Jane
by jenson40
Summary: Her name was Jane. He had given it to her because it reminded him of a time that was good. And it reminded him of a book tease and a conversation about a woman named Jane. Very AU Literati. Post-Finale. No revival.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Do I suck? Yes I do! I have had no motivation whatsoever to write Mayday, but I'm starting another multichap story? Yep that makes sense! Gotta love that writer logic. Anyway, I like don't even know why I'm posting this cause I only have the one and a half chapters done, but hey in six days I'll hopefully be good. Well, this is an AU like MAJOR AU. This, like all my ideas, came to me way way way before the revival came out. Now that it's out, all my stories besides Seeing the Light and Listening with Their Hearts are like super AU. Then again, they always were kind of AU, but it really changed my other ideas that were just speculation. Anyway, here is the first chapter of Jane. Let me say it is very Jess centric this chap and for a while. Don't forget to review, enjoy, and have a great Thursday/Friday!**

The first time she went to Stars Hollow she was three.

That was also the first time her mother had walked out on them (the first of many times), and her father had gone across the country looking for her. Jane didn't remember much of that trip to Stars Hollow, but she remembered her father being gone for two weeks. She remembered staying with her great-uncle Luke and her later to be great-aunt Lorelai. She remembered sleeping every night in their bed because she was scared and missed her daddy. She remembered playing with Steve and Kwan, and Davey and Martha. The worst thing she remembered though, was her father returning after those two weeks. He wore a torn expression, and in the back seat of his car was Jane's mother passed out drunk.

From then on, Jane and Jess spent every summer in Stars Hollow. It was the best way for them escape from Sandra and her druggy friends. Even at sixteen Jane didn't know why her dad still went after her mom. She kept running out on them, and she was always doing some drug or another, yet he always went out for her. It puzzled the girl to no end because she knew her father didn't love her mother, at least not anymore. He probably had once upon a time before she was born, but the minute her mother was found passed out on the floor with baby Jane screaming in a wastebasket he stopped.

He always said he felt responsible like he could save her or something like that. In her opinion, Jane thought her dad spent too much time trying to play hero and not enough time worrying about himself. Now she knew he got that from his uncle when he had taken him in when he was her age. It still just made her a bit angry every time her dad searched across the country for her mother. Sandra didn't deserve her father, and she most definitely didn't deserve his kindness. Jess was too forgiving with that woman. He let her walk in and out of their lives because he thought he could get her on the right track or that Jane needed her mother. Sure, she needed a mother, but not that one.

Jane's worst memory of her mother so far had been earlier that year, the last time she had seen her mom. Stars Hollow had always been her safe haven; her home away from home; the place her mother could never touch. So, the second she got her driver's license, Jane took off to Connecticut and the town that was far away from her mother's junky life. She hadn't told her dad, just packed her bags and left. Much like her mother had done to her too many times to count. She had shown up at Luke and Lorelai's in an oversized Penn State sweatshirt, and a duffel bag swung over her shoulder.

A week later, her mother had shown up without her father, forever ruining the town for Jane. Sandra had screamed at her for leaving without telling them, and the brown eyed girl bit her tongue incredibly hard to keep from shooting back about all the times she had left them without a trace, a call, an address, or a phone number. Plus, Jess knew where she was. Luke had called him within five minutes of Jane arriving at the Crap Shack. He hadn't told Sandra because he thought she had left for good the previous evening. She returned that morning after Jane left begging for money for her drug dealer. Jess had been denying her that for years, so he didn't know why she had shown up asking him. Then she noticed Jane was gone, and she went insane.

Jane ran her fingers across the long scar on her forearm from the razor blade her mother had "forgotten" was in her hand. She looked over towards Jess, who was driving, and noticed his grip on the wheel tighten when she touched the spot. He had never liked it when Sandra walked in and out of their lives. He hadn't liked her wanting to be involved with Jane at all, but had allowed it because he thought it would teach her to grow up like it had him. He had been so wrong, and it had only caused heartache for their daughter and for him.

Jane's brown eyes flicked to her dad's trusty iPod that sat in the unused ash tray of Matthew's old truck he had lent them. Jess had had to sell his car before they could move to Stars Hollow when Jane's mother had left with all the money he had to his name. She tenderly picked it up and scrolled through all the music he had downloaded over the years. Of course, there were his favorites like the Distillers (Jane always noticed the faraway glint in his eyes when one of their songs began to play), and a few for her like Miranda Lambert (through the years, Jane had decided that Miranda's songs about loss and heartbreak and people leaving really applied to her own life).

She had to admit that if there was one good thing about moving to Stars Hollow, it was the drive up there. When Jess grew tired or annoyed with traffic, Jane would take over. When she wasn't driving, she was choosing the music. The man currently driving had been pretty lenient about what music was chosen. If and when Jane did listen to country, it was always the loud songs that emulated a rock sound and the lyrics were all about people leaving. She felt like "Love Don't Live Here" had become her anthem song since the first time she could remember her mother leaving. Even though Jess normally hated country music, he had to admit that Jane had a point in her reasoning for listening to it.

The sign welcoming them to Stars Hollow was quickly approaching, and Jane's stomach churned with anxiety. She had loved Stars Hollow as a child with its charm and feeling like it was a completely different dimension and the fact that her aunt and uncle lived there, but it had been tainted the moment her mother had stepped across the city lines. Not to mention she didn't want to move away from all of her friends in Philadelphia and her father's partners who were like uncles to her. Jane sighed heavily as they passed the gazebo and saw happy families stepping out of the cold November air into warm shops.

The brunette shared a look with her father who only shrugged in reply. She grabbed her coat and slid out of the truck. She wobbled ungracefully on the salt that had been poured recently before carefully stepping up the ice steps to her great-uncle's diner. She glanced behind to see her dad slowly moving from the driver's seat, the expression he wore was tired and sullen, and he moved around to get a box or two. Jane pushed the door open, holding the door open as she waited for Jess, and was nearly knocked over by her Aunt Lorelai.

"Janie!" She exclaimed, wrapping the skulking girl into one of her fix it hugs. There was something about her Aunt Lorelai and her ability to easily change the mood in a room. She always brightened up Jane's day, and whenever her mother showed up out of the blue and high, Lorelai was the one she called. "I have missed you, Kid. Hopefully, your uncle will be less grouchy now that you and your dad are here!" She mockingly pointed at Luke, who rolled his eyes good naturedly before taking a random person's order.

They were interrupted by Jess grunting as he tried to push open the door and carry the boxes at the same time. In her natural Lorelai nature, the blue-eyed woman commented on how heavy that box looked before coming up with an excuse to get out of there. "Don't worry, Janie Lu, we'll do some serious pigging out tonight after work." She winked, and then Jane's aunt was gone. Lorelai brushed past Jess, trying to jokingly bump into him; but instead, it only caused him to lose his balance more and thrust the box in his arms towards Jane.

She grabbed it easily, but it was weighing her skinny frame down quickly. Luke easily stepped in and saved his great-niece from toppling to the floor. When she was finally righted, Jane nodded thankfully towards her father's uncle and took her place at one of the bar stools. Jess looked at her with tired eyes, but said nothing about her defiant behavior. She had been acting moody since he announced the move, and she had every right to be; he should know better than anyone. But, he wasn't Liz, sending his kid off to his family member to straighten her out. No, he was doing this for her, so she could have the life she deserved. His motives were purely self-less while his mother's had been purely selfish.

So, Jess allowed the crazy people that were Stars Hollow's residents to bombard his daughter. Two people could play this game. His supposedly good idea of a form of punishment was foiled when he returned downstairs to get another box, and Jane was happily smiling and chatting it up with all the weirdos that lived in this God-forsaken town.

"My, my. Jane, dear, you are absolutely gorgeous. Well, what else would you expect of Jess's daughter?" Miss Patty and Babette had flung themselves on either side of Jane. She smiled brightly at them; Jess hadn't seen that smile for a long time. "It's just marvelous how you've grown. Are you still dancing, dear? I would just die to have you in my class." The woman purred.

"Now that would be a show stopper. I can see it now: Jane and the Marionettes. I'm gonna get right on that." Kirk had apparently heard the conversation, and now had another money-making scheme off Jess's daughter. She tried to be annoyed, Jess could see how she wanted to be, but being in this town (no matter how much she claimed to not want to be there) always brought a smile to her face. Instead of telling Kirk to back off and that she wasn't going to let him 'make her big,' she smiled, albeit tightlipped, and forced a giggle.

"She's got the bum for it!" Babette exclaimed in her raspy voice. Jane's face went as read as her jacket. "Just so tight and compact. Who else has a butt like that?" She continued, even though Jane was obviously uncomfortable. She knew they were going to start talking about her father's and uncle's butts now, and that was one thing she didn't need to hear.

A crowd was now forming around Jane, and she tried to bask in it. She really did. She had always liked being the center of attention, it probably came with the mommy issues and the total abandonment she felt, and she had always gone about getting it in others ways that weren't acting out like her father had at her age. Although, the people were crowding and voices were shouting and it was all getting to be a little too much. She looked to Jess, panic evident in her eyes, but he only shrugged in response. This was her punishment for being an asshole from the moment she had taken the passenger seat.

"Hey, step away from the kid!" Someone shouted over the hoopla. The crowd parted like the red sea, and standing in the now open space was her Aunt Lane. Jane jumped off the barstool and allowed her other strong female role model to wrap her in a tight embrace. She turned back around after the hug and met her father's gaze. Her eyes were bright with triumph and haughtiness. She had beat the system. She always did.

Before anything else could be said, the Van Gerbig twins picked Jane up, causing her to shriek like a little girl. They laughed at her "misfortune" and continued to parade her around the diner. She kicked, yelled, punched, screamed, shoved, anything to get them to place her back down on her two feet. She knew they had picked her up on purpose. The twins had known of her fear of heights before she did, and even though she was only a few feet off the ground, Jane didn't like the felling of the air beneath her feat.

"I will kill you, Steve and Kwan! Put me down!" she screeched, throwing a strong punch at either one of the twins' faces. She didn't care if she actually hurt them, or which twin she hit. She just wanted to be put down. Finally, her fist found its mark; but when it collided with Kwan's face, his arms went up to his eye and she fell to the floor with a resounding thud. She huffed as her tailbone came in contact with the hard diner floor, but it didn't stop her from chasing after her best friends.

While her kids fought, Lane made her way over to Jess. There had been a time when she hated him (mostly for Rory's sake), but now he was up there close to best friend material. It had started the first time she had laid eyes on Jane—a small girl with a skinny little body that was in desperate need of food, her olive skin pale and blotchy, her hair matted after her mother had forgotten to give her a bath while Jess was away on business, a child who needed help—and she had told Jess that because she would help Luke and Lorelai with his kid didn't mean he could call her in the middle of the night asking for song recommendations (not like he needed them; if she was being honest, Lane was pretty sure he knew more than she did). Thirteen years later, here she, Lane Van Gerbig, was giving Jess Mariano a welcome home hug.

"You look like hell," she stated naturally like she was saying her house was dirty. Jess tried to smile but couldn't make it happen and sighed. Lane didn't look at him with pity like the other townspeople had. They all knew why he was back, and he could see them sending him apologetic looks when they saw his car. Lane looked at him friendly, a word she never would have used to describe their relationship back in 2002.

"Don't I know it," Jess muttered in response. The look Lane then gave him resembled pity, but it wasn't all there, and he could deal with her look. It was just the way the mental patients that resided here looked at him that made the anger he felt fester in his stomach. They looked at Jane that way too. They looked at the two of them like lost souls who were never going on the right track. It disgusted him and pained him at the same time. His daughter didn't deserve those looks.

His daughter didn't deserve any of this. She deserved the world; she deserved Penn State; she deserved anything but this rinky-dink town that no-one ever seemed to escape.

Well, except one person. One person who had gotten all she asked for, and more. Jess had heard she had a family now, she lived in Hartford and worked at a big newspaper, she didn't come home much, she was a society woman. Maybe, she hadn't escaped. In Jess's opinion, society was a lot worse than Stars Hollow which wasn't all that bad after he'd grown up. But she had left the town, and she had made a name of herself.

Jess watched as Jane's anger melted away to happiness, and she laughed a legitimate laugh for the first time in months. He hoped she could escape just like he hadn't.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Ok, so I know that like no one is reading this, but I'm still gonna post it. I normally get like annoyed when I don't get reviews, but I know that this story was written a little late in the game, so since we have all this canon it's hard to get behind, but I hope you like it all the same. Well, here's some more stuff on Jane, and her feelings and such. And maybe a little surprise at the end? Ok, well, please review because even though I say I don't care I do need that validation cause that's the kind of person I am. And, have a great week everyone!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

Throughout the years, Jane felt like a replacement. A replacement for her aunt's daughter whom she had lost to the Hartford society. Jane was always being invited over for movie nights and junk food binges that made her dad cringe, but she did it anyway just to annoy him. She felt like a replacement for her uncle's daughter who lived in New Mexico with her mother. She felt like a replacement, and sometimes it was better than being Jane.

Plain Jane Lucia Scarpelli Mariano. That's who she was all the time, and it was difficult holding up all four of her names to be the perfect daughter her dad needed her to be. She was named Jane after Jane Austen or Jane Bennet, but either way it was after a classic novel that held meaning to a mystery in her father's past. Lucia which meant "light" and was the feminine and Italian form of Luke, a man who had made such an impact on her father that he named his daughter after the guy. Scarpelli was her mother's last name that she absolutely hated because it meant that that woman who had left her really was her mother. Mariano for obvious reasons, and the fact that she couldn't just be a Scarpelli because there was no way she would be connected to that woman only.

Sometimes she liked being the replacement. When she replaced Lorelai's daughter, she was able to step into a different personality. She talked fast, confided in her aunt, and ate copious amounts of junk food. When she replaced Luke's daughter, she was smart and confident and full of brilliance that couldn't be put out. She preferred being those other people and not being Jane Lucia Scarpelli Mariano. She wanted more than the weight that came with her name. She needed to be strong like the Janes, she needed to be her father's light like Luke, she needed to prove that she wasn't like her mother a Scarpelli, and she needed to prove that she was going to be successful one day like a Mariano.

But there were moments, when she could be anything besides herself.

When she was young, Jane would watch _The Princess Bride_ religiously. Then again, it was the only video her dad had owned at the time, and they didn't have cable. But she had watched it religiously nonetheless. It, along with music, was used to drown out the sounds of her parent's fighting. When her mother screamed an ear-piercing scream, Jane turned it up louder. When her dad kicked her mom out for the night, she would pause the video and go find her father. He had his head in his hands, and he looked at Jane forlornly when she placed her pink five-year-old palm onto his arm. He would place her on his hip and walk them back into the small space that barely passed for a living room. When the movie ended, Sandra would return smelling like booze and sex and pot. She'd apologize, begging for Jess back, begging for his help, begging for one last chance. Her mother would then go to her room (Jane didn't know that parents slept in the same room let alone the same bed until she had gone to her first sleepover, and she had watched her friend's parents go into the same room after telling them it was time to go to sleep), and Jess would take Jane into the one they shared. Jane would pretend she was Princess Buttercup, and one day her Wesley would come and take her on an adventure.

He never came. Her mother never changed. Her father never fixed it. She never turned into Buttercup.

So, when Lorelai had invited Jane over for a movie night, she jumped at the chance. It wasn't like she was going to willingly help her father move anything. At best, she would sit on the couch, read, and direct him to where each box should go. They hadn't been on good terms lately, not since her mother walked out on them for the last time, and Jess had packed them up to move away from Philadelphia with its horrible memories and moneyless apartment. If Jane went to Lorelai's tonight, she could pretend that had never happened, she could be a replacement.

Her hand-me-down Ugg clad feet shuffled across the apartment floor. She knocked on the door frame that was the entryway to her father's new "room." He looked up from the box he was sifting through, and noticed the way she was dressed in an oversized Penn State sweatshirt with her custom-made Truncheon sweatpants Chris had gotten made too big for her a couple years ago. She was a walking reminder of the good things in Philadelphia. Jess knew she did it to spite him.

"I'm going to Aunt Lorelai's now." Her mouth formed a thin line, waiting for his approval. Jess looked behind her shoulder to see not a single box unpacked in the area of his old room.

"Have you unpacked anything?" He asked, knowing full well she hadn't.

Jane huffed annoyedly, "I unpacked a box of books." Of all the things they had had to sell after Sandra left again (it had to be for good this time, she had cleaned Jess out of all his money), the books couldn't be parted with. They held Jess's margin notes, and later Jane's margin notes or drawings. If she was going to unpack anything, it would be the books.

Jess sighed not too pleased with the progress she was making. "Fine, just don't eat too much junk food, ok? You can't dance if you're all ballooned up from the junk Aunt Lorelai's gonna feed you." When Jess mentioned dance, Jane's eyes snapped up from her shoes to the man who raised her. She had had to quit a few months ago when there was no longer any money to pay for it; Jane missed it terribly because besides pretending to be somebody she wasn't for her family members, dance was the only thing that kept her from going over the edge. When she danced, she could let the music over take her and just feel free. It didn't matter the kind: ballet, hip-hop, tap, swing, it was all therapeutic.

"Huh?" She asked, reminding Jess of himself.

"Patty came up to me today and before she could start flirting with me, I asked about dance. She's willing to let you go for free. As long as we do some yard work when spring comes around." When he said 'we,' Jane knew Miss Patty had been talking about Jess. Yard work meant mowing and cutting things down. Patty wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to see Jess doing physical labor in a t-shirt and shorts. Jane had to refrain from shuddering.

"Huh," she breathed. Jess was beginning to understand why Luke hated him saying that so much as a kid. "Thanks, Dad." Then she turned and walked down to the diner.

Thinking about Jane dancing again pained the writer. She had become bitter and spiteful these past months, and he hoped that dancing again would make her feel better. He had wished when she thanked him that she would call him "Daddy" again, but no such luck. His Janie Lu had turned cold towards him and towards the world. Her reaction to everything reminded him of himself, and he tried to cut her some slack. But it was difficult when he knew he was doing everything for her best interest, and he wasn't being a flake. He loved his daughter with everything; he hadn't loved someone like that since… Now wasn't the time to think of her while he had packing to do and bigger fish to fry. All Jess wanted was to know that his Janie, his precious daughter still loved him too.

Downstairs, Jane weaved through the occupants of the diner. They stared at her like she was Godzilla destroying their town. Jane never had this angry look when she came to Stars Hollow. She was happy-go-lucky and forgot about Philly. This time when Kirk mentioned how her sweat shirt didn't match her pants, she had muttered, "Go to hell, Kirk." Before slamming the diner door shut. She couldn't deal with the crazy, loveable townspeople right now. She just wanted to get to Lorelai's to eat some take out and watch some movies. Really, she wanted to be in Philly. If they had more than one car (and if the car was theirs), Jane would have taken it back by now. But she couldn't because they didn't have a car. They didn't have anything.

When she stepped into her aunt and uncle's house had lovingly been named the Crap Shack, the world seemed just a bit brighter. Her aunt's energy was infectious, and Jane couldn't help it when she was drawn into another bone crushing hug and smiled. "Oh, Janie! We are starting off with _Dirty Dancing_ , a classic. Then I was thinking a little _While You Were Sleeping_ , and to finish it off… the best movie adaptation ever, _Austenland_!" Lorelai knew these were some of Jane's favorite movies, and any remnants of a bad attitude had left the second she said _Dirty Dancing_.

They moved from the foyer to the living room where all the best junk foods were placed out. Jane took in all of her favorite candies and snacks: Albanese Gummy Bears, Cheez It snack mix, some left-over take out from Al's, and Gifford's Ice Cream. She was enjoying the attention, she really was, but Jane couldn't help but remember that this was what Lorelai had done with her daughter for years, and now Jane was the replacement. While she loved being the replacement, Jane couldn't help but feel a little sorry. Lorelai's daughter hadn't come home in quite some time apparently, neither had April, so Jane was her other person to choose from, but it made the both of them feel better in the end.

 _Dirty Dancing_ had been Jane's second favorite movie growing up. It happened to be the second movie her dad bought, and she knew that this was what had spurred her love of dancing. Probably not an amazing movie to show a six-year-old, but it kept her distracted, and she loved the dancing. The fluid motions and the feelings that Johnny talked about. Before the music would begin at her recital, Jane would pick out her father in the crowd, make eye-contact, and bring her two fingers to her chest over her heart. She would softly whisper "guh, gun," tapping her fingers twice on her chest. She could see her father do the same thing. It became his way of saying, "Good luck, I'm proud of you." Neither one had done it for months. Not after Jane stopped dancing.

It wasn't like Jess wasn't proud of his daughter after she quit dancing. He was prouder than ever because she had taken the problem in stride and had done what had to be done. He was proud of her in other ways too. She had ambitions, more than he could have said at that age, and she knew what she was going to do with her life. She had planned from a young age to go to Penn State. Jess had no idea why, but that was where she wanted to go, so he started saving away for her to go to Penn State. Then she would graduate with a degree in English, and she would go on to be a teacher and edit for Truncheon on the side. She had had it all planned, and Jess couldn't have been more proud.

But sometimes, Jane felt like Baby did. She felt lost and confused, having her life planned for years, but was it really what she wanted? Everyone was speaking so highly of her that she was going to change the world and pen the great American novel, but what if she didn't? Sometimes, she just wanted her Johnny to come and teach her how to dance and learn and love and dig deeper. She wanted to run away to the Sheldrake and dance the night away without getting caught. She wanted to change someone's life, but not be expected to.

Other times, she felt like Lucy from _While You Were Sleeping_. She felt like she was stuck in that transit box, never going to find love or an adventure one day. She felt like she was going to need to make up something. She felt alone, no family, just a cat. She wanted to cling to the family, she wanted to create a better life, she wanted to be in a city.

The worst though, was when she felt like Jane Hayes. It was bad enough that they shared a name, but that Jane had been more than hopeless. She had become obsessed with a fantasy of Darcy. This Jane, the real one, felt like she had become obsessed with a fantasy too. A fantasy where her mother loved her and her father was happy and her life was good. That was all she wanted. She wanted love just like Jane Hayes had, just a different kind of love. She wanted that amazing feeling of being fully immersed in something, but then the rug was swept from underneath her. Just like Jane Hayes. Must be a new saying, "Janes think alike."

Despite her inner turmoil, Jane laughed at all the parts she was supposed to, and "cried" at all the ones her aunt did. It just didn't make her feel better like it used to. Even pretending to be someone she wasn't, didn't make her feel any better like it normally did. Lorelai seemed just as into it as she normally did, but Jane just couldn't shake the feeling of complete and utter dread of being in Stars Hollow at this time. Maybe she could convince her dad to move back, they could live in the apartment above Truncheon, and Jane would be ready to live in Stars Hollow after college. But, she knew it wasn't a possibility. Her dad had made sure Jane knew that this move was final; they had spent too much of the nonexistent money they had to get here. Jane repressed a groan.

"Oh, I know that gardener dude gets on my nerves too! I mean he was such a jerk to lead her on like that." Lorelai had mistaken her niece's horribly suppressed groan for a crack at the movie. At least she wouldn't feel bad from Jane's annoyed behavior. When she didn't respond, Lorelai turned her attention to the teenager.

Jane's black hair was laying haphazardly across her face, and her nose and mouth were buried in a pillow. Her legs were folded neatly crisscross, and her feet were wiggling underneath her feather-like weight. All signs of annoyance and hatred. "Janie Lu, are you ok, Babe?" Lorelai ventured. She had known this girl for thirteen years now; she had watched her grow up, and this was not her niece's normal attitude.

"Aunt Lorelai—" she rolled her eyes, when her aunt cut her off.

"Nuh, uh. No way, Babe. This isn't my Janie Lu. I've already talked to your dad. He said you aren't talking to him, and that you're copping an attitude—which I mean you're your father's daughter—but you never cop an attitude with your dad. You guys are as thick as thieves. Come, tell Aunty Lorelai _all_ your problems." She patted to the spot closer than they already were. Jane scooted over a tiny bit, a playful glower firmly placed on her features.

"It's nothing, really. I'm just upset about the move, and Dad'll get over it. He wasn't exactly all sunshine and rainbows at my age anyway. Let's just watch the movie." She still didn't seem better, and Lorelai wasn't satisfied with that answer, but she accepted it and replayed the movie. Jane laughed heartily to show that she was indeed fine, but Lorelai wasn't buying it. She would have to call Jess after their movie night.

After the movie finished, Lorelai walked Jane to the door. "Alright, stay safe, Kid. If Kirk offers you candy, don't take it. I'll see you tomorrow for coffee." She called as Jane clambered down the steps. She turned, her hair flapping around with her hoodie as she waved. Lorelai watched for a few more seconds as Jane continued down the driveway. At the same moment, the two threw an arm up as headlights came barreling down the street. Jane ignored them as she kept walking, thinking it had to be her Uncle Luke returning after his evening away from movie night. Plus, she was too blinded to notice it wasn't her uncle's green pick-up truck.

Lorelai watched with anticipation as the mysterious care pulled into her driveway. It wasn't Luke's truck, and it was a car the elder Gilmore had never seen before. She looked down the street to see Jane obliviously strolling through town, and the woman's heart leapt into her throat. The car shut off quickly, and a woman stepped out sobbing as she ran towards the house. "Mom!" She let out a gut-wrenching sob as she stumbled towards the house. Lorelai's hand flew to her chest, tears now stinging at her eyes.

The two met in the middle of the yard, both crying. "Sweets, oh Baby," Lorelai cooed, placing her hands on her daughter's cheek. Rory sobbed loudly and un-lady-like into her mother's shoulder. "Sweets, where're Lizzy and Lukas?" She tried to get a grip on the situation and crying daughter.

"Th-they're in-in the back of-of my c-car," Rory stuttered, cries of anguish trying to render her speechless. She hugged her arms around her bare arms when Lorelai tore away from her. She didn't notice when her mother returned, carrying two small children. Lizzy's blue eyes studied her grandmother, and Lukas still slept like nothing had happened. The eldest Gilmore used all of her might to beckon her daughter forward into her childhood home.

Rory slipped onto the couch, barely able to look her mother in the eye. Lorelai kept hold of her grandchildren and set them up nicely in Rory's old bedroom. When she returned, her daughter was sobbing into the pillow Jane had clutched only minutes before. Rory's eyes were puffy and swollen from the crying she must have done back in Hartford all the way until now. Her jaw was hanging loose as each convulsion over took her entire being.

"Rory, you have to tell Mommy what happened." Lorelai spoke in the voice she only reserved for kids. Most of the time, she and Jane would joke about that voice, but this time she held back a biting remark.

"It w-was awf-ful. I c-came home early, and-and there h-he was. I-in our r-room with-th some bimb-bo. I-I knew it w-was going-ing on f-for a wh-while, but I di-idn't th-think he-he-he…" She couldn't finish her sentence as the memory was too powerful and controlled her every emotion. "He di-idn't even s-say any-huh-thing. I t-took th-the kids, and he wa-watched. He di-didn't f-fight for me; he j-just said, 'It-it w-was a long-ong t-time com-coming.' T-ten y-years of m-marriage go-gone bec-cause he w-would r-rather sl-sleep with s-some bimbo th-than me!"

Lorelai pulled her fully-grown daughter into her lap, shushing her lovingly. She had known right from the beginning that this wasn't good, but she thought Logan made her daughter happy. Rory had said he had changed, so Lorelai went along with it. Dear Lord, what she wouldn't give for a gun right now. Now, Rory was a sniveling mess because of that stupid, blond playboy.

Lorelai watched her daughter calm down and finally drift off to sleep, the fight with her adulterer of a husband obviously draining. The rumor mill was about to get a whole lot more interesting.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Let me just say, thanks to the people who actually read this! Yep, it's just a story I feel like most people wouldn't read cause of the whole revival happening, but I hope that you all who are reading it are enjoying it! Anyway, I just would like to say I hate writing dialogue cause then I feel like it takes over the story, but then it wouldn't work without dialogue, so it's there and yeah. Well, I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I'm posting it like the night before I normally would because I don't want to post it in the morning, and I don't want to stay up late, or wait till I get home from school. I hope you all enjoy, and please review if you are reading and enjoying. Heck, review if you aren't enjoying it. I love hearing your feedback.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

Jane knew from the start that she was going to be registered at Stars Hollow High the earliest day possible, but she didn't know how quickly she would be put into the system. She started the day she registered, something normally unheard of, but this was Stars Hollow, and unheard of was just a normal day for them. Didn't make the teenager any happier.

Sure, she had friends in town (Steve and Kwan being the most obvious), but she just wanted some time to settle in before having to face the other kids her age. She knew her dad had to have asked someone to pull a few strings because on that Sunday before school he had been so annoyed with her it wasn't even funny. Now, Jane was facing punishment and going to a school she didn't want to go to. Also, it was a Monday. Couldn't get any better than that.

Although, Jess had been pretty lenient as of late, and Jane had pushed to see how far he would go. It wasn't like they were on legitimate speaking terms. Jane had stopped talking to her dad for real the minute he had followed through with the move. She hadn't thought he would actually go through with it, but he did, and now she was upset. That previous evening, she had acted like a child, completely destroying all the unpacking progress that had been made the day before. She had been half-way out of town with the boxes in the back of the truck when Jess had caught up to her with Luke to bring her home.

He had been furious.

"Jane Lucia Mariano!" He had exclaimed when she finally pulled over. Whenever he was mad at her, Jess omitted the 'Scarpelli' part of her name. He didn't like to remember that he had shared his daughter with someone else for too many years. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" Jane had never seen him this angry at her before. "You are out of your damn mind to think that this would work! You're grounded for the rest of the damn week: no phone, no books, no TV. Get in with Luke; I can't look at you right now!" He had dragged her from Matt's truck and threw her into Luke's open passenger seat.

Even in Luke's car the tension was high, Jane had laughed lightly at the awkwardness, but her uncle had only shot her a stern look that quickly shut her up. "Janie…" Luke sighed, unable to think of anything else to say. Jane swiveled from the window to her uncle, ready for the reprimand because Luke was a lot better at it than her father. She was surprised when he didn't say anything.

"What, Uncle Luke?" She ground out, angrier at her dad than her uncle.

"You're… You're so much like him." Nothing more was said the car ride home.

So, that was how Jane found herself going to school a day earlier than planned. She had royally pissed off her father, and she had disappointed her uncle. She felt really crappy. Like really crappy. She kept trying to hurt her dad, make him see her pain, but she only strained their relationship more. They had always been close, closer than her other friends and their fathers. She knew it killed him when she acted that way, but she didn't want to fix it. She wanted to make her dad feel a bit crappier before she would try to redeem herself. What Jane didn't know, was that Jess had already forgiven her. He was good at that, forgiving her, especially since she was his daughter and he loved her beyond comparison. It made all these stunts she pulled twist a knot in her stomach.

She had sat with the twins at lunch with a few of their band friends. She had a few classes with the twins, and a few with her (oddly enough) best friend Rachel Forester. When she had brought Rachel around the diner ten years ago, her father had almost had an aneurism, Mr. Forester too. But, they were now best friends and inseparable during the summers. Rachel had introduced Jane to a few other people, but no one had really stuck out as being friend material. She had Rachel and the twins; they were fine as it was.

The day wore on, and Jane felt nothing but tired and crappy. She was internally battling with her want to apologize to her dad and her unwillingness to apologize to him. She hadn't been all that fun throughout the day, and she was the first out the door when the last bell rang. She just couldn't believe that she was going to Stars Hollow High, and she hated it. This was supposed to be her safe place and her favorite town ever, but she didn't want to live here now.

Originally, her dream had been to move here as an adult to continue her father's publishing company in Hartford after going to Penn State. It was the dream, but being here now… it just seemed wrong. The happiness she had associated with Stars Hollow was gone, and it was all thanks to her mother. But then again, all the bad things that ever happened to Jane were because of her mother. That no good whore was gone, hopefully for good, but not before stealing every cent Jess had ever owned. Sandra had even taken the money out of the fund set aside for Jane's college. Looked like Penn State wasn't gonna happen either. (Frankly, she was getting a bit used to the idea of going to UConn instead. It was still in the Big Ten; she could at least still see her team play.)

Rain fell into her hair (which was odd considering it had snowed the weekend before), but Jane didn't care enough to pull out her umbrella or run for shelter like the other kids. She saw Steve and Kwan off in the distance, and she knew they would gladly have her over or invite her to do whatever they were doing, but she didn't want to. She wanted to go swimming, which was stupid in the present weather of a nice forty degrees and pouring down rain. Thankfully, the guys ducked into their grandmother's shop before they could see Jane or invite her anywhere.

She could go to Aunt Lorelai and Uncle Luke's. No one was there with it being well within normal working hours. Not that her great aunt and uncle were normal, but that was one of the few things they did along with the rest of society. But, Jane felt at the moment she wouldn't be welcome there; even though there was supposedly no one at the Crap Shack right now. Jane had seen that car that had pulled up the other night sitting in the drive way, and she heard Luke and Lorelai speaking in hushed tones about her father and staying away from the house. Jane wasn't sure if that stretched to her as well.

Eventually, the rain began to soak through her clothes, and the brunette begrudgingly took out her umbrella. She knew she couldn't go back to Luke's like this or else her dad and uncle would flip out about her getting sick. With the length she had walked, Jane realized it would be smarter to just go to her aunt's infamous home. It was just around the corner anyway; but when she rounded the bend, Jane saw the same car from the past couple days. She didn't think twice about it before getting the key from under the turtle and escaping the trenches.

She immediately threw down her things in the foyer and headed to the mysterious extra room that had belonged to Lorelai's daughter. Jane had never met this daughter (and frankly, she didn't actually believe she existed. She had seen April multiple times to know that her uncle did in fact have a daughter, but there was no proof that her aunt did), but she often heard the people whisper whenever her father came to town about some old flame that was supposedly Lorelai's daughter (again, no proof or acknowledgement from her father). Jane felt bad that she didn't learn much about her aunt's side of the family. All she knew was a phantom daughter and a mother who had moved to Nantucket after the passing of her husband. Otherwise, squat.

Jane's dragging feet caught slightly on the loose floorboard between the kitchen and the bedroom, causing her to stumble forward towards the desk. After righting herself, Jane jumped backwards onto the twin-size bed, letting out an ostentatious sigh. Being in this room always made her feel like she was walking on glass. She wanted to do anything but mess up that room even in the slightest. She had this feeling that her aunt would notice if one of the Yale penates had moved a forth of an inch; it didn't matter how many times Lorelai told Jane to make herself at home, she never could while being in this room. It needed to be preserved like an artifact in the museum that was her aunt's memories.

Feeling a slight chill from her long walk in the rain, Jane wearily stood up and marched to the dresser. There had been many times when she had left her things in this room, but she never found herself able to take them home with her. These belongings had once been hers, but now they were Stars Hollow's. Though for now, they would be hers. Jane lightly pushed the door shut in case someone walked in through the back door as she kicked off her jeans and sweater then throwing an old t-shirt she had stolen from her father over her head and pulling on a pair of pajama shorts. Her dark, thick hair was even more black and heavier with the added water, so she pulled it back into an incredibly messy bun. She took one look at herself in the mirror (which was ridiculous since she wasn't going anywhere or seeing anyone) before thrusting the door open towards the kitchen.

Even though her body was now dry, chills still ran up and down her spine. She pulled a blanket around her shoulders, but it did nothing to control the shaking. Her brown eyes scanned the kitchen searching for something warm. It was down to coffee or hot chocolate, and Jess would die if she drank coffee, so the most obvious choice was coffee. Until she tried it. With the bitter taste it left in Jane's mouth, she knew why her uncle detested the drink her aunt claimed came from the gods. Maybe her dad was right for once (just this once). Hot chocolate was the much tastier alternative.

As she walked back into the bedroom off the kitchen, Jane realized the torrential downpour they had been facing was over. This would be a good time to return to the apartment above the diner, but she still didn't want to see her dad yet. She would probably camp out on the mattress until Lorelai came home and realized she was there. It was nice to feel warm and cozy under this blanket while watching _One Tree Hill_ on her laptop. She should get into more fights with her dad if it meant lots of time at Lorelai's and a good loophole to the no TV punishment she had suffered.

When she heard the front door open and shut, Jane thought nothing of it. Glancing at the time, she noticed that Lorelai would be going on "break" about now, anyway. Because she knew that Lorelai was actually siding with her father for the first time, Jane slammed on the button to shut the tab quickly and scrambled for the door. After door shut with a resounding thud, she went through her Spotify looking for a good dancing song. The beginning chords of "Masquerade" from _Phantom of the Opera_ played, bringing good memories of Jane's most recent and favorite production. Lorelai wouldn't question if Jane was dancing with music coming from her computer.

The steps were still fresh in her mind even though it was months ago. Hearing the music, Jane let her body take over. It was muscle memory now, but she would occasionally throw in freestyle moves. It was odd without a partner, but Jane managed as she remembered the feeling of Parker's arms brushing over hers. Another pang of sadness coursed through her when she thought of her best friend and dance partner, but there was nothing she could do about it now.

She stared out the window, suddenly out of breath from the months she had spent not practicing; but, hell, it felt amazing. Jane missed dancing and being a part of productions, and just this little taste of it made her giddy with excitement. "Ah!" She exclaimed, jumping up and down for a moment before composing herself. "Calm down, Janie." She told herself, unable to repress the smile that seemed to make her more beautiful.

She didn't know why, but "Once Upon a December" began playing next, and Jane smiled thinking about the fun and gorgeous moves she had learned a few years ago when her school put on the show. It was one of the only songs that had made it into the Broadway show, and Jane loved that she had been able to dance in it.

"Who're you?" an unfamiliar voice popped Jane's bubble of excitement. "What are you doing in my parents' house?" Jane spun around, confusion ingrained deeply into her features. Standing in the doorway was not her Aunt Lorelai like she had thought. Instead, a woman around her dad's age with her aunt's eyes was in the doorway. On her hip was a little boy probably not even two, and at her side was a girl around three or four.

Jane stared in shock; this was not April. This must be the proof of the existence of Lorelai's mysterious daughter. The little girl tore away from her mother's side and looked up at Jane. She tugged on Jane's shirt (in reality it was her father's old Distillers t-shirt he refused to wear), and the woman in the doorway stifled a gasp. She recognized that shirt.

"What's your name?" The little girl asked, still tugging on the oversized t-shirt.

"Jane." Was her modest reply. The woman still gaped.

"My name's Lizzy Huntzberger! It's short for Lorelai Elizabeth. I'm Lorelai the fourth after my grandma's grandma, then my grandma, then my mommy, then me!" This child seemed like she was hopped up on caffeine or something from how quickly she spoke. "That's my brother Lukas, Mama named him after my grandpa. Well, the grandpa I like anyway. Grandpa Huntzberger is weird and wants me to call him 'Papa,' but I don't want to cause he's real mean to Mommy just cause her newspaper is better than his."

The woman who was Lizzy's mother and possibly Lorelai's daughter made a face that her daughter couldn't see. Jane said nothing, her eyes still squinting at this woman holding a one year old in her aunt's house. The woman opened her mouth like she was ready to say something, but another slam of the front door took their attention.

"Jane!" Jess's shout caused Jane to cringe, and the woman jumped. "Jane Lucia get your butt out here right now!" He was stomping towards the room, and the woman's eyes widened with fear. He stopped when he saw the woman in the doorway, also taking in the child on her hip; but he regained his orientation when he saw Jane standing in the room. Her countenance was void of all emotion as she stared through her father like he was a ghost.

"How'd you know where I was?" She asked, a stomp and a huff accompanied her question. Jess pushed past the woman holding the baby, grabbing onto Jane's shoulder. She brushed him off, turning towards her computer, unwilling to meet his angry brown eyes that were exactly like hers. When Jane looked at her laptop, Jess shut it quickly.

"Mrs. Kim doesn't have wifi. Says it's the gateway to the hell. It was either with Steve and Kwan or Rachel, but she has swim today," he explained, and Jane rolled her eyes. "That's not the point, you're grounded."

"Not from Aunt Lorelai and Uncle Luke's!" She shouted, her foot stomping annoyedly. "You never said anything about not listening to Spotify." She flipped the laptop back open. Both had forgotten the woman and her children.

"Kid, you're me. You came here to watch Netflix, and I saw how much _One Tree Hill_ you watched." He got out his phone, ready to prove to her that he had really known what she was up to. She threw her hands up defiantly, knowing full well that he indeed had seen her activity.

"No, I'm not you! I'll never be you! I'm going to college at Penn State, and no I don't know where the money will come from, but I'm getting there. I'm gonna get a degree! I'm not gonna move my kid to a place they never wanted to go! I am not you," Jane seethed. When Jess placed his hand on her shoulder, Jane picked up his hand and threw it down. Jess wasn't angry with all that she had said; he felt bad that his daughter felt this way. That she obviously hated him now, even though she was his daughter and he loved her.

"Janie," he sighed, and her face was burning red with anger.

"Don't call me 'Janie'! I'm not your Janie. I'm Aunt Lorelai's Janie Lu, but I'm not you, and I'm not your Janie! I haven't been your Janie since the last time Sandra left!" She picked up her laptop, not caring that the woman and her kids had seen their entire fight.

"You just got two more weeks added to your grounding," he called after her.

"You can't control me, just like you couldn't control my mom!" She turned around throwing him a steely glare that would have made any other person cower in fear, but this was her father—the king of these glares—he wasn't scared of anything she did (well, he was scared when she put her life in danger, but that's normal).

"I can do whatever the hell I want. I'm the parent!"

"Yeah, a bad one!"

"You want a bad parent? Go stay with Grandma Liz, that's a bad parent. You have no idea how good you got it, Janie," he sighed, realizing Jane wasn't paying attention as she started rifling through her backpack.

"Whatever, I'm going back to the diner," Jane mumbled, rushing out the back door after she had all of her things in order. The door slammed shut, and the little girl who had been standing next to Jane jumped, accidentally grabbing onto Jess's leg which was placed where Jane had just been standing. He looked down at the little girl, his heart breaking slightly thinking about when his girl was that young. She looked up at him with big Gilmore blue eyes, and his expression quickly morphed into a sweet smile.

"Now, who have we here?" His entire demeanor changed within a second, and the little girl wasn't as scared with the writer. She smiled brightly at him; her baby teeth pearly white; her eyes bright when she heard his now soft voice. She still hadn't let go of his leg, but Jess didn't mind. He had been craving the feeling of a child needing him; Jane had been more and more independent, and she barely even talked to him. That shouting match they had had was the most they had talked in a month.

"I'm Lorelai Elizabeth Huntzberger! But Mommy calls me Lizzy like Lizzy Bennet!" The little girl, Lizzy, threw one arm out, but the other was still firmly clasped around Jess's leg. He smiled down at her, trying not to make eye contact with the girl's mother or think too hard about her last name. "And that's my baby brother Lukas! Mommy named him after Grandpa Luke!" She pointed towards her mother and brother.

"Wow!" He feigned excitement, and Lizzy smiled a little bit brighter (if it was possible, her smile could be a beacon in the night). "You just met my daughter Jane, right? Well, she's named after Jane Bennet. And, her middle name is Lucia which is like a girl way of saying Luke. Seems like your mom and I think alike." Lizzy bounced up and down a bit hearing the similarities between her and the older girl she had just met. Jess took a chance to look at Rory unable tell if she was repressing a smile or a grimace; but either way, her eyes shone.

They stared at each other for a moment longer, Jess completely taken by her ability to still be as beautiful as the day he met her. She watched his roaming eyes, suppressing a blush as she shifted Lukas farther up her hip. His little fingers tangled in her hair, and Jess waved lightly as the baby looked at him. Lizzy was still attached to his leg; she too enjoyed the warmth from the father—a feeling she was starved from her own father and his cold family. She giggled when Jess bent down and picked her up to carry her to her mother. He tickled her slightly when she squirmed.

"I believe this belongs to you?" He joked, placing Lizzy in front of Rory. The woman nodded, still at a loss for words. Jess—her Jess, the one she believed in, the one she had lost contact with—was standing before her during her impending divorce smiling and laughing at her children. Not to mention she had just witnessed his own role as a father to his teenage daughter (who reminded the younger Gilmore of another certain Mariano at that age), and his ability to smile without looking liking a grimace. He had grown up while she felt the same as the time he had come to her Grandparents house nearly eighteen years ago.

"Uh, yep. That's mine…" She was speechless. He noticed, a smirk forming on his lips. He came in closer, and Rory felt like her knees might buckle. He was more intoxicating than any alcohol, and he was kinder than her current husband. She noticed more, though, as he drew nearer. His forehead was crinkled with worry lines, his eyes had wrinkled slightly from smiling, his chin was dark with a five o'clock shadow. But there was something she couldn't miss, not in a million years. His eyes filled with longing and sadness. She knew because that was all she had felt these past days. He was hiding it, the same as when they were young.

Rory stopped breathing when he leaned in and placed a kiss on her cheek like he was saying goodbye to a good friend he wouldn't see for a few months. It was warm and full of more love than anything her husband had done with her.

"I've gotta go… do the dad thing…" Jess whispered. His lips were nearly resting on her cheek since he hadn't moved much after pecking her, and his breath was hot and sent a shiver down her spine. He pulled away; she missed him already. "It was good seeing you, Ror." He waved, heading towards the backdoor. Her mouth was open, moving quickly, but didn't utter a sound. He still had that effect on her. They were thirty-eight; he shouldn't still have that effect on her. But, he did. More so than the man she married.

Lukas started fussing, and that was the end of that.


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Hey I'm updating on time that's a good sign! Well, not much to say on this except hope y'all are enjoying it and yeah. If you are I would love a review, if you're not I'd still love a review. Constructive criticism is always welcome here. Enjoy! Have a happy Sunday!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

Jess didn't know what to do with Jane. Nothing was stopping her, not like it used to. His daughter used to be the sweetest, happy-go-lucky kid in the world. She never stepped out of line, and when she did, she owned up to it, or accepted her punishment fully. At first, Jess had thought this change in attitude was a phase. It had started a few months ago when Sandra left again, so Jess assumed it would go back to normal after a week or two like usual. Then, Jane started acting up. She would come home late, only do her homework at odd times, make snarky comments at Jess and Matt and Chris, stopped eating with her father, refused to obey anything. Of course, this had to be a part of growing up; Jess had done the same things to Luke, and he had grown out of it. But, days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into a month, and at that point Jess was at the end of his rope.

Then Jane went quiet.

She stopped making snarky comments, stopped doing her homework, stopped talking in general, stopped eating (which hadn't lasted long when she had seen the donuts Matt brought in), she had even stopped reading. Her normally long, run on sentences turned monosyllabic, and her music turned off, and her whole persona changed. She wasn't Jane anymore. Jess thought this another change of phases. But when he told her they had to move, she had come around to being snippy again. Nothing was stopping her now.

She was stone. She was using sarcasm and hatred to build walls around her heart, and nothing could tear them down. Not Lorelai, not Rachel, not any living being. She was angry and tired and done with everything around her. Jess wanted her to know that he understood; he had been in her shoes years ago. She wasn't taking it.

He had to admit, those remarks she made at Lorelai's house had stung. When Jane was little, she looked up to Jess. She believed him to be the strongest person alive, and he let her because that was how he wanted her to think of him. He was both parents when she had one. He loved her when her mother didn't. He pushed her when she wanted to quit. He was her father, and she didn't want that anymore. He wanted to be that for her, though. He longed for the nights when she was little and scared of thunderstorms, waking him by jumping on his back because she didn't like the noises. He missed when she would get a bad grade (a _C_ in her opinion was a bad grade, but at least she wasn't trying to get them) and come home all mopey then they would watch a movie, and she'd perk up again.

That was his daughter. Jess wasn't sure who this person living with him was.

He unlocked the door to the apartment—which Jane had done to annoy her father; honestly, there was no reason to need to lock your door in Stars Hollow—and could hear the shower running. At least she was clean (the week she was on fall break, Jane had stopped showering in protest). Jess jumped when Jane accidentally banged on the wall; he had lived in bad neighborhoods for too long, and even the slightest noise made him worry about his daughter.

If someone had told Jess twenty years ago he would first: have a daughter, and second: be the parent that stayed, he would have probably punched them (since twenty years ago he was eighteen and had probably just had that fight with Dean). He never saw himself as the fatherly guy, but the second he held Jane, he was a goner. This was his daughter, and she was his whole world. She was like him in almost every way except for being a happy child. She forced him to grow up, and she taught him how to love and communicate. She was the best thing in the entire world, and (even though he wouldn't admit this to anyone, not even Luke) she was slowly but surely breaking his heart.

Now, Jess had never been one for the whole love-y dove-y stuff, but he was affectionate with Jane. He told her every day how much he loved her because that was something he had missed out on. He needed her to know that she was loved, and that he was going to be there for her. He needed her to know that she could come to him, and that he would never judge her because she was his and only his. She was his sweet, precious Janie Lu. Not even her current attitude could change that. He wasn't going to give up on her just because she started copping an attitude for the first time in sixteen years.

The water shut off, and Jess could hear Jane stumbling around for her face wash. She wasn't playing music, a constant that surrounded her like a perfume. All was quiet. The quiet was what hurt the most. Jane didn't speak to him anymore. She said "yes," "no," "maybe," "I don't know," and "Dad go away." She didn't tell him about her day, she didn't ask how Truncheon was doing, she didn't tell him about her plans, she didn't even call him Daddy anymore. She was quiet. She was annoyed easily. She was different.

The bathroom door slammed against the wall as Jane threw it open. Steam followed her out like some old movie. Her eyes were red rimmed, and Jess wasn't sure if it was from the hot water in the shower. Her dark curls were drying on her shoulders, getting frizzier and fuller when it hit the moisture-free air. She glanced his way as she walked past his bed towards her room.

"Janie, Luke wanted to know what you wanted for dinner. He's having Caesar bring it up in a few." Jess stood up from his bed, walking through the kitchen into Jane's room. She sat at his old desk, a mirror now hanging on the wall as she combed her hair. Her things were all out on the desk, looking more like a vanity than a place to do homework. She looked over her shoulder; one hand gripping her locks, the other trying to loosen the knots. She harrumphed, barley glancing at him for a second. "I'll just tell him you want a tofu burger." He sighed, waiting to see her reaction. The comb hit the desk hard, and Jane's fingers gripped the side of it. Her knuckles were white, and her arms were full of tension.

"I'll have a burger with fries," she ground out. Jess nodded, realizing fully that she didn't see or care about his response. He continued to watch her as he started out of the apartment. She slumped against the chair, her hair still knotted. Her hand was pressed hard into her forehead, and she was breathing deeply—Jess didn't miss the shudder that accompanied her deep breath. When the door shut, he heard her muffled and strained sob. She was trying to hold it in. This was more than act. This was Jane trying to save her father from her pain. She didn't want to place her burdens on him.

Jess quickly retreated to the diner to make sure Luke got what they wanted, and he then returned to the apartment in hopes of getting to Jane before her walls returned. He had pushed people away, and he knew what she felt. He had raised her; he knew every little detail about this specific kid because he wasn't going anywhere. He refused to go anywhere.

Jess quietly opened the door in hopes that Jane wouldn't stop abruptly when she heard the door. She hadn't. She remained at the desk, her face buried in her arms. Jess shuffled over, placing his hand on her back. Jane stiffened. "Janie," he muttered as she faced him.

"Daddy," she threw her arms around his neck, the most contact they had had in months. "Daddy, I'm so sorry. I didn't m-mean anything I said. I'm so sorry. Please forgive me, Daddy. I didn't mean any of it. I didn't want to hurt you." Jane cried into his chest. Jess nodded, stroking her hair lovingly like he did when she was a small child. She didn't cry for long (she was a Mariano, of course she didn't), but it was enough.

"I'm sorry, Jane. You shouldn't have to go through this…" He said into her hair. Jane nodded, feeling bad about her self-indulgence. She wasn't one to succumb to her feelings. She repressed them and continued on. She was strong and brave and everything beside this scared and lonely little girl. But she had to do it. It was the only way to let it go, and to get back to the relationship she used to have with her father.

"I love you, Daddy." It was the first time since Sandra left that Jane had said either of those two things.

"Kid, you have no idea," Jess breathed. This was his Jane. She was warm and cuddly; she was opening up and talking to him; she was sweet and loving. She just needed that time (Luke and Lorelai called it 'the asshole phase') to regroup and be Jane again. "Come on, let's watch _The Princess Bride_." He still had her underneath his arm, and she kept her arms firmly around his torso. This was who they were. They were Jess and Jane. Father and daughter. Finally, they were back.

 **XXX**

The next morning, everyone in town noticed the change in Jane's persona. She was happy again, dancing around the diner, getting in trouble when she accidentally knocked over a plate, jumping up and down when Rachel came in for breakfast. This was the Jane everyone knew and loved and remembered. She was even happier since all of her punishments had been revoked the previous evening—not that Jess normally did that, but Jane had been sincere, and he thought it best that she felt more comfortable—and Rachel was giggling as they ate their pancakes together.

"Jess, how've you been?" Dean asked when Jess brought him his order. It was odd how they had grown into this pseudo-friends type of thing. With their daughters being best friends, it was impossible not to run into each other; and without the jealousy coming between them, there wasn't anything to keep them at each other's throats. Frankly, they had sort of become close in the past thirteen years.

"Well," Jess started as he sat down on the other end of the table. "I've been better, but it's an adjustment. Jane wasn't doing too well the first few days, but she's better now. We talked last night… You know how it is, teenage girls and all." Even though they talked regularly and didn't hate each other, Jess still found it odd to have a conversation with Dean.

"Yeah, I know. Ivy's been doing the whole 'Miss Independent' thing, and it's driving Caroline nuts. She's not even thirteen, and she's acting like she's going off to college. Thank God, Braden and Haley don't care about anything besides super heroes." Dean smiled as he talked about his kids. Jess couldn't deny that he sort of liked the guy now, and Dean's smile no longer made Jess want to off himself. Their conversation was interrupted for a moment when Rachel laughed loudly, and chocolate milk spurted from Jane's nose, causing the girls to laugh harder.

"That's my daughter, the epitome of class," Jess joked, as they watched the girls interact. Dean smiled at seeing his daughter so happy to have her best friend back. They continued the conversation, and Dean—now an esteemed economist, who knew?—was giving Jess some advice on what to do with his current financial problems.

"How did Sandra even get into your accounts?" Dean asked, confusedly. Jess shook his head as he thought back on it.

"I have no idea. She must know a guy or something, but it doesn't matter now. I'm most pissed that she somehow got into the savings account I set aside for Jane's college. She's worried about paying for Penn State, and now it's out-of-state tuition… it's just a mess." Jess relayed, not getting too open, but not closing up all the way.

"I mean, it's not like you guys were married with a joint account… It just blows my mind, that she could actually do that." Dean was still thinking hard, and Jess fought the urge to tell him not to hurt himself. Even though, if he did it now, Dean would probably just laugh. The men were deep in thought, trying to find a solution to the problem that is Jess's financial situation.

The bell above the door jingled, and no one thought twice as a woman and her two small children entered. The little girl, a four-year-old, bounded over to Jess and hoped up into his lap gregariously. It surprised the two men at the table, as she stayed there and began eating off of Jess's plate like it was a normal occurrence.

"Hi, Mr. Jess!" She yelled through her full mouth. The men began laughing heartily, as the little girl continued to eat off of his plate.

"Jess, who's this?" Dean laughed, knowing full well that Jess is not a kid type unless that kid is Jane. The girl didn't even let Jess respond before butting in.

"I'm Lorelai Elizabeth Huntzberger, but everyone calls me Lizzy. I'm visiting my grandma and grandpa!" she excitedly told the tall man, still stuffing her face. "Mr. Jess knows my mommy, he kissed her cheek yesterday after he yelled at Jane, whose named after someone from _Pride and Prejudice_ like me. I was scared, but now I like Mr. Jess cause he's nice to me and Mommy. It's ok if he's not nice to Lukas, he's an annoying baby." She continued to ramble off while Jess wondered how she learned his name since he only told her about Jane.

"Lizzy, that's not nice to say about your brother." Her mother came up behind them with Lukas still glued to her hip. "And don't eat Mr. Jess's food. Grandpa's making you some pancakes right now." Dean stopped short when he saw Rory. Jess was now somewhat accustomed to her being there after a day, but Dean probably didn't know she was in town. He was way over her now, but there was always something about seeing an old girlfriend.

"It wasn't even my food," Jess chuckled, situating Lizzy better on his lap. "It was supposed to be Jane's, but she's got Caesar wrapped around her finger, so he'll make her something else." The chocolate pancakes were too far gone anyway. Lizzy had devoured them in the least amount of time possible; there was no doubt this child was a Gilmore.

"Thank you, Jane!" Lizzy called over to the teenager at the counter. Jane looked at the child confusedly, but smiled back and waved anyway. Lizzy kept eating the pancakes while Jess bounced her on his leg. "Who're you?" she asked Dean, a chocolate ring around her lips. Dean looked up at Rory, acting like he's not allowed to talk to the child, but she nods her head in affirmation.

"I'm Dean. Rachel, my daughter, is Jane's best friend." He pointed over to Rachel who was still cracking up from when Jane snorted chocolate milk. They were talking animatedly about it, and Jane's arms were flailing as she tried to reenact it. He checked his watch, frowning at the time. "Sorry, I have to go. Girls, get to school!" Dean yelled, startling the girls. They checked their phones and scrambled for the door.

"See ya, man." Jess waved as Dean made his way out of the diner. Rory took the seat that Dean had previously occupied, and Luke brought over a high chair for Lukas. She looked at Jess quizzically then at the window to where Dean was walking down the street.

"So, are you guys like, friends now?" She tried to keep from giggling because the only image she could conjure of Jess and Dean in the same room was if they were fighting. Jess shrugged his shoulders, picking up a fork to have a bite of the demolished pancakes.

"Rachel and Jane have been best friends for years, we were bound to see each other. Just kinda became friendish." He kept shrugging because it was awkward talking about his pseudo-friendship with Dean Forester.

"Friendish?" Rory asked, feeding a spoonful of applesauce to Lukas.

"Friendish," Jess replied. She let the matter drop to which Jess was thankful; even though, he knew that she was laughing on the inside there was no questioning it. They sat in silence, save Lizzy's loud munching, and Lukas's baby babble. She slowly sipped her coffee, and he watched her every move. Not in a creepy way, but in a curious way. She hadn't changed an ounce; she was still the exact same Rory Gilmore from the way she drank her coffee to the food she ate.

"How are you, Jess?" Rory asked. She knew nothing about him now except that he has a daughter and that he was back in Stars Hollow. She could tell that he was a good father, at least. Or, he seemed it from the way he didn't take any of Jane's crap, and he treated Rory's own daughter well after having known her for a day. Children were drawn to him, which she had always thought him to be a big softy and wasn't surprised by it, and he apparently liked them back.

"I'm not bleeding or anything," he retorted sarcastically. Rory rolled her eyes, placing a small bite of pancake on Lukas's high chair for him to try. "I'm fine, Rory." He was a bit more firm, although unsure, as the words left his mouth. She didn't believe him for a second. She knew him, and he knew her. "How are you?" He implored, trying to keep the conversation away from his horrible life decisions. Rory looked stricken, unsure of what to tell him or how to talk about it with her very impressionable daughter sitting on Jess's lap.

"Lizzy, go see if Grandpa needs any help. Or better yet, go talk to Miss Patty and Babette, they're over at that table." She pointed to the most likely gossiping women across the diner. Lizzy hopped down from Jess's lap, content with her belly full of pancakes, and walked over to the loud women. Rory looked at Jess, unsure of what to say. She knew that he knew her, but she didn't want to give him reason to say 'I told you so.' He moved his arm across the table so they're hands were nearly touching before grabbing hers and giving it a tight squeeze. She was liking this more affectionate side of Jess. Being a father really suited him.

"If you tell me what's going on, why you're mopey and back in Stars Hollow, I'll tell you how I'm doing. And I mean really doing. Deal?" Rory couldn't believe that Jess was willing to talk about how he felt. He had really changed, in a good way. She nodded and breathed in slowly before responding.

"I'm getting a divorce," she began, and Jess bobbed his head slowly, preparing to hang on to every word she was going to say. "This weekend, I came home and found Logan in our bed with another woman. While the kids were sleeping a few doors down. I lost it. I swear, I turned into the Hulk because when I saw that woman, I literally flung her out of our room. I mean, we've been married for ten years, why didn't he just not marry me in the first place? He literally told me, 'It was a long time coming.' It would have been easier for him to say no, or for me to turn down his proposal. I packed up and left. When the papers are final, I'm gonna fight for sole custody. He literally brought home a floozy while our children were sleeping down the hallway. And it wasn't like I was holding out on him, though. We have two kids; obviously, we've been making whoopy. At first, I was sad, like really sad; but now, I'm just angry."

Jess fought every single urge telling him to say, 'I told you so,' but he didn't because right now Rory needed a friend, and they had always been anything if it wasn't friends. She finally met his gaze, confusion evident in her normally clear eyes. "That's why I'm back, your turn!" She fake smiled before making a dopey face at Lukas. Jess sighed and ran his hand across his face.

"Because I'm in a good mood, I guess I'll tell you why I'm back," he smirked, but in reality, he didn't want to talk about his past and feelings. However, he was a changed man now, and he couldn't not tell her when she had told him her troubles. "Seventeen years ago, I met Sandra. I wasn't in a good place at the time, and she was sort of a place holder. Um, she was gorgeous—at the time—and her family was this huge Italian family that accepted just about everyone, and they drew me in. Then, she got pregnant with Jane, and suddenly she couldn't be just a place holder anymore. I don't know, though, when she got pregnant she just went crazy. A few months ago, she left again after stealing all my money. It was either move here or get evicted, and Jane already knows the town, so it hasn't been that hard of a transition." He tried to keep it short and as sweet as possible, but no matter how he could have told the story, Rory would still look at him sorrowfully.

"Jess, I'm sorry," Rory reached over to grasp his hand like he had done to her a few moments before. He felt a tingle in his hand when they touched, and he grimaced. "How is Jane? She didn't seem that ok with the transition last night." Rory wanted him to keep talking; she liked that they were catching up, even if the content wasn't all that happy-go-lucky.

"She's fine now, we talked last night. She's a great kid, Ror, I mean really great. It shook her up when Sandra left, and I thought she was turning into me, but she's better now. Her grades are improving, and she's gonna start dance again. I didn't want her to be like I was, and she knows that I'm doing all this for her. I never saw myself as a father, or the parent who stayed, but these past years—even with Sandra—Jane was even better for me than Luke… Don't tell him I said that, he still brags that he got me back on track." That last comment caused Rory to giggle, and she reveled in the fact that Jess was no longer a brooding teenager who didn't know how to communicate.

"I'm happy for you, Jess… Well, not the money being gone part, but Jane turning into a good kid. I can only hope that Lizzy's as good as she is when she's older. Except that fight you guys had last night…" She trailed, smiling good naturedly. Jess nodded, that had not been one of Jane's—or his—finer moments.

They spent the rest of the morning in silence. Just enjoying one another's company. It was what both of them needed right now, a friend.


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Sorry this took so long… I really suck at going between two different stories, but that's not an excuse! Also, sorry about the amount of dialogue and lack of description (frankly, I'm more of a feelings person), but I believe the dialogue was necessary to the backstories and plot. Anyway, enjoy! Happy reading, happy reviewing, happy week!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

Seventh period just seemed to drag on and on. Jane had finished her in class work and her homework within the first fifteen minutes, and she had forgotten to bring a book. Within the first day she had been caught up fully since she was always smart, and as her father said: this was public school, her history was the football coach.

It was odd being in such a small school where she had Rachel in about every class since they were in the honors classes, each with its own specific class period since there weren't enough honors kids to have more than one. Steve and Kwan weren't in as many of her classes. They were in a few honors, but at some point, the boys had gotten lazy and didn't move ahead to the other honors. Although, they were in about three of her seven classes, and they had lunch together.

Jane was watching the paint peel on the wall adjacent to her when Steve tapped on her arm. She swatted at his hand, but he grabbed his pencil and began swishing her hair. Jane grabbed the pencil and snapped it in half; Kwan snorted at his brother's misfortune; Rachel giggled beside them. Steve started tugging on her hair, and Jane twisted around with murder in her eyes. He flung himself farther in his chair with a cheeky grin plastered to his lips.

"I need a favor," Steve whispered, accidentally sending chills down Jane's spine. She rolled her eyes; Steve was always asking favors of her. "Can you take over my shift at Luke's? I have test corrections, and if I don't do them, Mom and Grandmama Kim will destroy me." He held his hands in a praying gesture. Jane sighed resignedly but nodded. Steve moved forward and quickly pecked Jane's hair. She slapped him hard, causing a loud crack to ring out in the room; but their teacher said nothing when the entire class stared at the two.

"Stay gold, Ponyboy," Steve yelled after Jane when the bell rang. She shook her head, throwing up her middle finger as he stared at her back.

She stomped out of the school annoyed with her friend. Steve always used her for something or other, but asking her to cover his shift was a first. Growing up, Jane had never been asked to work at the diner. Luke had insisted that Jane focus on being a kid when Jess had wanted to teach her. Although, she had seen her dad and uncle do it for years, and Jane was picking up on it bit by bit. Not to mention this was Stars Hollow; she already knew the regulars and their orders.

Her feet slapped up the steps, and Jane got an amazing idea. She had remembered a story that her dad had told her years ago when she as little and couldn't sleep because her mother had said something that scared the living daylights out of her. Her dad had gotten an old flannel of her uncle's and a backwards baseball cap when Luke told him not to wear his Metallica shirt (which he still had and would occasionally let Jane borrow to annoy Luke).

"Uncle Luke, Steve can't come in, so I'm covering his shift!" She shouted before running up the stairs to the apartment. Luke looked confusedly at the curtain where his great-niece had just been. She returned a minute later with her hair in a French braid, a flannel covering her shirt, and a baseball cap on top of her braid. Luke's hand flew to his forehead; of course, Jess would tell Jane about the time he had pulled that stunt.

"Just don't offend anyone, and don't make up weird diner lingo, your aunt does that enough," Luke huffed and handed a notepad to Jane before going into the storeroom. She turned around to face the diner occupants—there weren't many, but the post-school rush would start soon—and she smiled when her dad walked through the door.

"I have never been more proud," Jess laughed as Luke was returning from the storeroom. Luke glared at his nephew who only continued to laugh. Jess sat down on a stool in front of while Jane took orders like she had been working at the diner for years. When she finished, Jane walked behind the counter to give the orders to Caesar before stepping in front of the cash-register.

Jane looked expectantly at her father, and he made a face that gave no indication of his thoughts. "Daddy…" Jane poured a cup of coffee for her father.

"Janie…" he responded. They continued to hold a staring contest; Jane dying from lack of knowledge.

"How'd your meeting with the bank dude and then the Truncheon investor dude and then the realtor dude?" she asked excitedly. Jess waved his hand, causing Jane to roll her eyes.

"You don't want me to bore you with the adult stuff," Jess sipped at his coffee, not really wanting to talk about his meetings. Jane huffed and refilled Kirk's coffee.

"Yes, I do, Dad! I want to know 'cause it's important." Jane was practically shaking, and she had to place the coffee pot back into its rightful place.

"Well, I don't want to talk about it," Jess pointed.

"Was it that bad?" Jane somberly asked. Jess nodded his head slowly, unsure if he really should have allowed Jane to know that much. He wasn't going into details with her, she had enough stress as it was; but he it probably was best that he didn't keep her completely in the dark. "I'm sorry, Daddy."

"It's not your problem, Janie."

"But it was _my mother_ who did this to you."

"Jane, your mom was messed up. She only cared about drugs and booze. I shouldn't have let her near you, and if I hadn't, she wouldn't have been given the chance. This is all on me," he assured her, pulling lightly at her fingers. He tapped his nose—another gesture they had done when she was young, especially around Sandra—and Jane tapped hers. "Uncle Matt and Uncle Chris are coming up next week to help me sort it out. Don't worry about it, Princess."

"You don't make it easy to not worry about you, Dad," Jane felt the hint of a smile tugging on her lips.

"You're not too good at it yourself, Janie Lu," Jess smirked. Jane smiled now, and she walked around the counter to help a few other costumers, but Jess grabbed her arm. "I love you, Jane. You're the best thing that ever happened to me." He now stood and was pulling his beloved daughter into a loving hug.

"I love you too, Dad. You're the best parent that ever stayed." She squeezed her arms tightly around his torso.

"Don't worry about me, Janie."

 **XXX**

Steve never did show up to relieve Jane from his shift. She watched people come in and leave and go upstairs (her dad) and eat and stay (Kirk) and talk for hours. She found joy in yelling at Kirk and Kirk, Jr., and she talked with Rachel when the lulls began. It wasn't until near closing that Lorelai came in with Rory. Lizzy and Lukas weren't in sight, but Jane remembered her uncle excusing himself to go home a few hours ago, most likely to watch his grandchildren.

"We're gonna need some wine, beer, martinis, gin, whiskey, anything you got, Janie." Lorelai bounced on her stool while Rory slumped in hers.

"Dad's got some beer upstairs," Jane shrugged and placed her pad of paper on the counter before turning towards the curtain.

"Jane, she was kidding!" Rory called after her, but Jane either didn't care or hear. Actually, Jane had heard, but she had never formally been introduced to her aunt's daughter (was she her cousin?), so hearing Rory call after sounded weird. It was too late to turn back now because Jane stood in front of the apartment door.

Jess was sitting at the kitchen table, papers everywhere, his phone on speaker with Dean, and his head in his hands. He forced a smile at his daughter who watched with shock, but she moved past him for the fridge. His eyes widened when she pulled out three beers, and he told Dean he would need to call him back. She grinned devilishly before rushing down the stairs.

"What the hell, Jane?" Jess stumbled down the stairs to see Lorelai and Rory drinking his beer at the counter. Jane came to his side after popping the top off and handed the third beer to her father. "How'd you learn to… I don't want to know."

"Well, when your mom's an alcoholic druggy, you learn a few things," Jane quipped as she wiped down the tables to prepare for closing. Jess pretended he didn't feel Rory's sympathetic gaze as he sat on her other side. Plus, he knew what Jane meant. He stole a quick glance at Rory, now noticing the slight redness to her eyes. She quickly swigged her beer, having felt his look.

"Hey, are you ok?" Jess asked, placing a rough hand on Rory's back. He was gentle. That was all she could think about now, was how gentle he was. No longer was he brash and rude and self-involved, now he was friendly and open. Well, as friendly and open as Jess could be.

Rory's eyes darted to Jane, who was humming and dancing around the tables, not sure if she wanted to get a little emotional with her ex-boyfriend's daughter in the room. She wanted to talk to someone who wasn't her mom—the woman who had been by her side all day relentlessly and was now getting to be an annoyance instead of a rock—and Jess had always been that someone she could go to. And, she didn't want to talk about it in front of her mom any more, or in front of Jess's daughter.

"No," Rory whispered, low enough for only Jess to hear. He slowly brought his beer to his lips, thinking of what to say next. He leaned in closely, faltering when she sharply breathed in, but continued when she relaxed.

"Me neither," he whispered, and she shivered. While Jess had never been good sharing his feelings, Rory always felt like he seemed put together enough to be, at the very least, "OK." She knew he had taken every curveball life threw at him, and he worked through it beautifully, but to know that maybe he was just as lost and broken as she was brought a warmth to her chest. He wasn't as James Dean as he used to be.

"Hey, Janie, you know what goes great with beer? Ice cream!" Lorelai shouted. She could feel the tension in the room, and even though she hadn't liked Jess in the past, he was a pretty standup guy now. He definitely raised his kid right.

"In cones!" Jane replied, dropping the broom she had used after all the tables were cleaned. She then ran from the store; Lorelai chasing her. Now, Jess and Rory were alone. She could tell him about everything that had gone wrong that day, and everything that would go wrong from now until the divorce was final.

Jess placed his hand on Rory's and grabbed the now empty beer bottles. He pitched them quickly before leading her upstairs to a more private setting. They sat in silence at the table. Neither willing to speak first.

"Do you want another beer?" the writer finally asked. Rory shook her head. She never liked being inebriated; Logan made it more unappealing as their marriage went on. "A soda?" Jess asked again to which she nodded. He grabbed a second beer for himself but placed a Coke in front of her.

Jess still watched her as she opened the Coke and took dainty sips. She caught his eye, and she felt her cheeks burn. He was waiting for her to speak, to tell him why she wasn't ok. All the words stopped in her throat, and she continued to drink her Coke.

"Logan's gonna fight for custody," she said. "His dad found out that I'm fighting for sole custody, and he can't let that happen. He doesn't want there to be a divorce at all, but I didn't marry Mitchum. He cheats on his wife too, but they're too important to get a divorce. So, if Logan can't be married to me, I can't have my kids."

"That sucks," Jess told her. He couldn't imagine what it would be like to have Sandra take away his ability to see Jane.

"Mitchum's just jealous cause my newspaper is better than his. He thinks that he can bully me into submission, and make Logan look like the freakin' martyr while he takes my kids away. Logan was literally at the hospital for the least amount of time he possibly could be when I had Lizzy and Lukas. He said that hospitals made him uncomfortable, but I heard him on the phone with his dad. They never liked me, and now they're trying to take away the only good things I got from that marriage." As her rant went on, Rory let the tears flow, but refused to look like a blubbering little school girl.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what that feels like. Sandra didn't want anything to do with Jane from the start."

"Logan didn't either! He told me to get a nanny, and I did because I was busy too. But, I always spent my down time with them, and he just said hi and bye before and after work. He was going to agree to me getting custody, but his stupid control-freak father won't let the Huntzbergers lose anything. Today when we were getting some of the papers in order, my lawyer told me Mitchum wanted a paternity test done! I'm not a side whore, I was his fucking wife. Why would I lie about my children like that?" She was getting more riled up, but her tears didn't dissipate.

"Ror, he's a jerk." Jess wanted to reach out and touch her, hoping that human contact would comfort her, but he decided against it. She wiped at her eyes, nodding like a broken toy. "Truncheon's probably gonna go under soon." He changed the subject to something equally sad, but could get her mind off of her own problems.

"What?" Rory sobered, now watching his eyes intently scan his beer bottle.

"I had a meeting today with the bank and an investor and a realtor. Chris and Matt didn't have the heart to tell me that our other branches haven't been doing too well since Sandra took the money. She has to be damn crafty to take money from Truncheon also. Not sure how we're gonna get out of this one. I was bagging on the new branch in Hartford helping bring in revenue, but I can't get a place or money from our investor or a loan from the bank. Jane's gonna be so disappointed." He dropped his head. Rory quickly took his hand in hers, making it look like they might arm-wrestle.

"From what my mom's said, it sounds like Jane worships the ground you walk on. How could you ever disappoint her?" Her voice was still thick with unshed tears, but she wasn't wallowing in her own misery anymore.

"It's always been me and Jane. Sandra was a passing ship, and when she was younger, Jane would do all she could to make it better. I don't want her to know that Truncheon, the place she grew up in and loves more than anything and dreams of working at someday, could go under any second. You know what I mean. We're parents. We try to shelter our kids from the bad stuff." Jess pulled his hand from hers—he didn't notice her frown deepen from the lack of warmth—and dug the heel of his hand into his forehead.

Rory did know what he meant. She wanted nothing more than to keep her children away from Mitchum Huntzberger and his lifestyle. She didn't want Lizzy and Lukas knowing that their father was a man-whore who didn't know how to be monogamous. She felt a burning sensation in her eyes because she knew so well what he meant. She longed for the days when Lizzy anticipated her father coming home instead of dreading it. The warm tears once again spilt down her cheeks, dropping onto the placemat.

"Fuck," Jess groaned. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to make you cry." He moved his chair a bit closer, resting his arm around her shoulders. It was like years ago when he would pull her close, trailing heated kisses up her neck.

"No, no," Rory stuttered. "I was gonna start c-crying again anyways. I'm just scared. Cause I want to shelter Lizzy and Lukas, but I know that Logan's gonna get the best lawyer in Connecticut, and I can't lose them. He doesn't want them. He wants to win. I don't want Lizzy to hear her father lie about me and turn her against me. I'm really scared, Jess. They're my children."

Jess moved even closer, practically pulling her into his lap (which he would never do because she was still technically a married woman whom he had left on a bus twenty years prior. He didn't have any right to be comforting her or anything). She continued to cry into his shoulder, thinking about all the horrible possibilities that Logan could manage with his choice of lawyers.

"I know a really good lawyer in Philly. I published his wife's first book, so he owes me. I could call him," Jess suggested, shifting his arms so that Rory could comfortably let it out. She looked at him with her tear rimmed eyes, and he smirked his lopsided smirk that still drove her crazy. "Think of it is a welcome back gift."

"But, I've got a lawyer," she said, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Not this lawyer."

"Jess, you've got more important things to worry about than my divorce and custody problems."

"I'd rather think about this than my business being destroyed because the mother of my daughter wanted a hit. Breaking my daughter's heart along with my business." He mumbled the last part, hoping she hadn't heard it.

"I'm sorry we lost touch over the years," Rory whispered. "I could have helped you or something."

"Not your fault."

"Yeah it is. If I hadn't gone to Philadelphia that weekend—"

"I wouldn't have Jane." He cut her off quickly.

"What?"

"That was the weekend I met Sandra, and I wouldn't have gotten anywhere with her if you hadn't come to the open house."

"But, I hurt you."

"By hurting me, I got together with the whack job who gave me my daughter. By default, you gave me my daughter. You made me a better person a thousand times over."

"I, uh, wow. When you said Sandra was a place holder you meant for…?" Rory trailed, unable to believe what she was hearing.

"Yeah," Jess breathed, unable to believe he had just admitted that.

"I'm still sorry. I wish we had stayed in touch."

"I probably wouldn't have been good company. I was really bitter when Sandra was popping in and out of our lives. Still am."

"But," Rory started, somehow her hand had found his cheek, and she trailed her fingers along his face; he didn't mind. "I could've helped you or Jane."

"Your mom and Lane were there for her. It's the past, Rory. Nothing we can do about it now. Jane's a young woman now who had an amazing role model. I'm nothing if not proud of how far Janie's come. She's the best thing that happened to me."

"I get the feeling."

"I know, and that's why I want to call my lawyer and get him to help you. There was this one time that Sandra had taken Jane on a 'vacation,' and I thought I was gonna lose her. I wouldn't wish that pain and worry on anyone."

"I… Jess…" she faltered, unsure of what to say.

"You're a good mom, Rory. You're a hell of a lot better than my mom or Jane's mom. It's the people like you who should keep their kids."

"I have to do something to repay you."

"No, you don't."

"Let me give you a job at my newspaper! That way you can earn money faster."

Jess laughed at that. "I write fiction."

"That's more closely based on your life than a Kathy Reichs novel."

"I'm fine."

"No, you're not," Rory kept from shouting. "You just gave a million reasons on why you're _not_ fine."

"I'll think about it." Jess relented because he was indeed not fine. Downstairs, Jane and Lorelai could be heard returning.

"Good," Rory smiled at him. She heard her mother's loud voice and looked at the slightly ajar door. "I should probably get going."

"Yeah, Jane's gonna come up and do her homework soon."

"Thank you, Jess. I really needed this. I'm also glad that I get fifty bucks from Kirk." Jess stared at her confusedly, as she hopped up from his lap that she had ended up on as they talked. "Oh, when I got to town he bet me that I couldn't get you to either talk about your ex or talk in general for more than one sentence. I did both!" This was more like the Rory he knew.

"I can't believe you used my hardships to win a bet."

"Please, you claim to know me. Obviously, you don't know me as well as you thought." Her laugh was infectious, and Jess found himself smiling. Her eyes turned serious though when she leaned down and placed a kiss on his rough cheek. "Goodnight, Dodger," she murmured in his ear.

"Goodnight, Book Tease," he replied, his crooked smile even brighter. Rory almost allowed her knees to buckle just so he could catch her. She didn't know why her heart skipped a few beats when she saw him, or why her cheeks tinged a pale pink when she thought about him, or why her mind was immediately run over with dirty thoughts that she hadn't thought for Logan in years.

Rory was glad when she finally made it out the door into the cold November night. The shock was just enough to bring her back to reality.

Until that night, when she dreamed about the warmth of lips on hers.


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Hey! Guess who's got two thumbs and is the worst… This girl! Anyway, I just finished this, and it's like a longer one because y'all deserve a longer one after that wait! I hope you enjoy this, and idk but you might want to get some popcorn cause this one is like a frickin' dramedy. Maybe more drama than comedy, but you know. Ok, well…. Enjoy! Happy Wednesday! And please review even if it's just to tell me how much I suck as a writer because I can't keep to my schedule!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

Jane was doing all she could to hold in her laughter. She was trying really hard, but the way that Rory was struggling with her kids was incredibly hilarious. Lizzy was eating her food, occasionally throwing pieces of syrupy pancakes at her baby brother's head. It was then getting matted, and Rory was trying to clean it out, but Lizzy then threw another one. That child was a hellion if Jane ever saw one. Although, Jane took pity on her dad's friend and waltzed over to the table.

"Jane!" Lizzy yelled, throwing her hands in the air excitedly. Throughout the week, Jane had kept her distance from the small family that was related to her, but Lizzy kept finding her out. Frankly, Jane had barely talked to either mother or daughter.

"Hey, Kid," she greeted indifferently. She still didn't know how she felt towards Lizzy, or Rory for that matter, since she had never really been a kid person besides the few times she babysat for her uncles. "Why don't you come with me? I have something for you to show your mom." Jane held out her hand for Lizzy to take. The little girl jumped up from her seat and followed the older girl upstairs.

They ran inside the apartment, and Lizzy waved largely to Jess at the table. He had been spending more time upstairs than in the diner as he tried to figure out their financial problems. He didn't need anyone seeing him working on it, or want them asking him questions. He chuckled, though, watching Jane dress Lizzy up in an outfit resembling the one she wore to work to annoy Luke. Then the girls scampered down the stairs back to the diner. Jess almost didn't follow them, but he did because he had something very important to tell Rory, and he didn't want to miss Luke's face when he saw both his granddaughter and niece parading around the diner dressed like him.

Downstairs, Jane placed a pad of paper and pen in Lizzy's hand. The two stared at each other then Lizzy shifted her Gilmore blue eyes between the paper and Jane. "Can you write, Kid?" Jane questioned, realizing how young Lizzy. Lizzy shook her head, dirty blonde curls bobbing with her movement. "Alright, well, you ask 'em what they want, and I'll write it down. Sound good?" the older girl asked. Lizzy nodded jovially, and Jane pointed to their first customer (victim).

The girls walked up to Rory's table, and Lizzy looked to Jane when she didn't know what to say. "Uh, say 'What can I getcha?'" Lizzy returned her gaze to her mother and baby brother.

"What can I getcha, Mommy?" Causing Rory to chuckle as she asked for more coffee. Lizzy looked at Jane quizzically when she didn't right anything down, but the teenager explained that coffee didn't need to be written down. Jane's shadow followed her around to the coffee maker, but was disappointed when she was denied the right to pour coffee. She began to pout, but Jess had walked down the stairs, so Lizzy rushed toward him calling for Jane.

"What can I getcha, Mr. Jess?" her adorable smile bright as she tried to get him to order something. He scanned the diner and smiled when Rory pushed her hands forward as if to tell him to do it. He nodded, and she beamed.

"How about some onion rings?" he asked. Lizzy looked to Jane who wrote down the order. Lizzy was still waiting for Jane to give a yes or no, but she never did, so the little girl ran off to go find another costumer. Jess took that as his cue to go talk to Rory.

She placed a few more cheerios on Lukas's tray before turning towards him. "You just made a certain four-year-old _very_ happy, my friend."

"I'm glad," he said. "But I was hoping I could make a certain newspaper editor _very_ happy." A sly smirk now graced his features.

"You're gonna come write for me?" asked said editor. Jess scoffed.

"I never said I would."

"You said you'd think about it."

"That's beside the point," he changed the subject. "I talked with my lawyer friend in Philly, and he said he'd be happy to come up and help you. Now, before you go all 'I have an attorney,' let me tell you that this guy is like renowned in Philly. He's so willing to help that he's coming up today to meet with you."

"Jess," Rory shot him a concerned look. "I have an attorney, and she's the second best in Connecticut. Also, she might harm me if I tell her I've got another attorney."

"But let me guess. Logan's got the _best_ lawyer in Connecticut. As in first best. But, he doesn't have the best lawyer in Pennsylvania."

Rory rolled her eyes, but Jess did have a point. She didn't have the best attorney in Connecticut. She had a great one, who also happened to be one of her best friends; but she didn't have the best. If this guy was really all Jess played him up to be, it might be worth it to let Paris down easy. She didn't have time to respond before the bell dinged, and Jane grabbed everyone's attention by flinging herself into the newcomer's arms.

"Tristan!" she shouted. Rory's jaw dropped to the floor.

"What's up, Wendy-Bird?" Tristan responded, still swinging Jane around.

"Please, please, please tell me you brought Hilary and Sawyer!" Rory had never seen Jane this excited. Then again, she had only known the girl for about a week, maybe two.

"Yeah, they're gettin' the stuff out of the car," Tristan chuckled, placing Jane back on her two feet after swinging her around. She immediately ran from his arms out the diner doors, leaving behind a confused Lizzy who now sulked over to her mother's side. Outside the window, Jane was hugging a blonde woman with soft curls and a girl around Jane's age that looked a lot like her mother.

Jess stood up quickly, and the two men hugged. "Jess, it's been a long time, man." Tristan backed away taking in the diner that he had heard all about.

"Too long, man," Jess replied.

"What can I getcha?" Lizzy came up underneath Jess's arm. Tristan got down on Lizzy's level, his eyes bright.

"Aren't you a little young to be working here?" he asked, the lawyer side hoping he wouldn't have to do something about his friend's uncle and child labor laws. Lizzy shook her head.

"I'm not working. Jane's helping me annoy my grandpa, but he's not here, so she said to keep doing what I'm doing. So, what can I getcha?" she asked again. Tristan opened his mouth to reply but was stopped by Lizzy's little hand. "You're gonna have to wait until Jane gets back 'cause I can't write."

Tristan only laughed as he stood up. Lizzy still watched him with scrutiny, but she lost interest when he wasn't going to order something. Tristan made his way over to the table that Rory was occupying, his smirk bigger than Jess's ever would be. "Well, well, well. If it isn't Mary Gilmore, as I live and breathe." His comment would have made Rory's blood boil when they were in high school, but they're adults now with jobs and families.

"I thought we got rid of you twenty-one years ago. I guess no one's that lucky." She smirked back. As Tristan prepared for another remark, Jane entered with the women Rory assumed to be Tristan's wife and daughter.

"Oh my gosh, you must be Rory!" Tristan's wife exclaimed. Her green eyes were gorgeous, and her blonde hair perfectly framed her face. The woman pulled Rory into a hug, a smile never leaving her face. "I'm Hilary, and wow. I can't believe I'm finally meetin' the famous Rory!" As she spoke, Hilary seemed to have a tad bit of twang in her voice; although, instead of being grating, it was soothing and charming.

"Mom, don't throw Jess under the bus!" the blonde teenager still hugging Jane said. Hilary waved her hands and winked at Jess before hugging him too. Rory only blushed as they spoke of her. "I'm Sawyer by the way." Sawyer stuck out her hand to shake Rory's.

While the DuGrey's were getting acquainted with Rory, Jess stepped towards Jane and whispered, "We've gotta talk about adult stuff, so can you and Sawyer take Lizzy to Rachel's or something… maybe Haley and Lizzy will get along." Jane snorted thinking about Rachel's very much tomboy sister getting along with princess-y, bossy Lizzy. "Ok, yeah, maybe she'll be, like, fascinated with Ivy." Now, Jane could believe that one.

"Sure thing, Daddy." She kissed his cheek before ushering Lizzy and Sawyer out of the diner. Sawyer was excited to see Rachel again after the last time she had come with Jane to Stars Hollow during one summer. Now, the adults could talk shop. Or, divorce.

Jess led them up to the apartment away from the prying ears of the town gossips. Miss Patty most definitely was looking at Tristan like a piece of meat, and she probably already recognized him from the one time he was in Stars Hollow to practice Romeo and Juliet (that woman was crazy scary in some ways). Jess rushed in before everyone else to pack up all of his bank statements and Truncheon papers. He placed them on the counter in a neat stack before pulling out Rory's chair for her.

"Ok, so I'll let you get to it," Jess felt awkward intruding in on Rory's personal life that he hadn't been a part of for twenty years. He was speaking to everyone in the room, but he only looked at her. Her eyes pleaded for him to stay, but that was inappropriate. He didn't deserve or need to know about her failed marriage. He had supplied a lawyer, and that was that. He swore he could hear his heart hammering in his chest when he gave Rory one last goodbye glance.

As the door shut, Tristan turned to Rory. "So, Mary—"

"If you want my money, it's Rory. I dropped Paris as my lawyer cause Jess said you were the best. Now, I could always call her up and get her down here because I think it'd be funny to see her rip you to shreds for stepping on her turf. So, if you call me 'Mary' one more time…" her threat died on her lips, but it was enough. Tristan was going to eventually transition back to calling her Rory since they were keeping in professional, but her threat, which was more funny than threatening, only quickened the transition.

"You know, I like her." Hilary placed a hand on Rory's knee as she laughed. "Oh, and I hope you don't mind my being here to talk shop with you. Tristan can get a little apathetic, and I sometimes have to put him in his place. Happens with all the clients. Also, I studied law in college, but didn't take the Bar. Liked writing better." Rory nodded along as she listened to Hilary ramble on. She could give a Gilmore a run for their money.

"Anyway, Rory, Jess told me a little bit like the whole fighting for custody, and you're aware how messy that will make this, right?" Rory nodded again. "If it was let's say amicable, no kids, no belongings to fight over, we could have this done within a few months, but your kids will make it longer and more complicated. But just so we're clear, why are you filing the divorce?"

"I caught him cheating. I was working late, and he promised to put the kids to bed. I got home earlier than expected, and I thought I could surprise Lizzy cause Logan almost always gives her leeway when it comes to bedtime. Walked into her room where she was sleeping then went to find Logan. There he was in our bed with another woman. Lizzy hadn't been asleep more than fifteen minutes." Lukas giggled happily as Rory finished speaking, completely unaware that his mother was going through the wringer.

Tristan thought for a moment, his hand on his chin. "And you've already filled out the Summons?" Rory nodded. "How about the Complaint?" Another nod.

"Paris got them to me like a day after I left." Now Tristan nodded.

"You've got your return date?"

"Uh, yeah, December 5th."

"Alright, there's not much I can do at this point besides give you advice and stuff. As the court date gets closer after the return date, then I can be of more use. So, I totally believe you that this guy cheated on you, but you're gonna need proof for the courts."

Rory laughed wryly, "He was making a sex tape when I walked in. That enough proof?" she spat.

"That could work," Tristan laughed. "From what I've seen I think there's a good chance of you getting at the very least joint custody, but you would have more time with your kids than Logan would. Since this is a society divorce, and it will get gossipy and messy, I mean it won't be something like _Law and Order_ , but is there anything that Logan could possibly use against you in court?"

"No," she huffed. "I've got plenty on him if that'll help me. Like the time Lizzy was three, and he went inside to make a phone call and forgot about her. Or the time that he was so annoyed with Lukas's crying that he threw a chair. Or the time that he hired a nanny for a day because I was at work, and he didn't know how to change a diaper. Now, I'm not saying he doesn't love our kids, but he's not a father. I bet he doesn't even know Lukas's middle name."

"He does. It's Oliver." The two women in the room gaped at him.

"Tristan, how do you know that?" Hilary asked her husband.

"He's my cousin. We've kept in contact over the years, but don't worry. I'm probably more willing to be on your case because if anyone knows how much of a douche Logan is, it's me." The women still gaped at him. "But, that's beside the point. Don't worry Rory cause I'm gonna make sure that he doesn't get your kids. He's not a good guy, and he doesn't know how to be anything but selfish. He's not going to get custody. You can count on me, Mary." He smirked as Rory rolled her eyes.

 **XXX**

Jane was reading a book at the diner counter while Jess was cleaning tables as the final occupants began leaving the diner. Jane pulled the book closer to her face, displaying the title and cover of a woman's feet. She picked up her pencil, writing a few notes in the margins about shock therapy. Jess's eyes flicked to his daughter; she reminded him a lot of himself at that age, but Jane had a better head on her shoulders. She loved and communicated and finished what she started.

"Dad?" Jane didn't look up from her book, and her voice was quiet and weak like she was afraid of something. Jess grunted in response, and the sixteen-year-old slammed her book on the table. "You know I hate when you do that?" she knew his answer but asked the question anyway. Her father shrugged while he cleaned out some coffee cups. "Whatever." She brought the book back up to the level of her nose.

Jess waited to see if she would tell him what was on her mind. Sure, they had been improving this past week since the break through, but Jane was still having some trouble coming to terms with recent events. Then again, who could blame her? With her mother leaving for good, and no money to attend college, and moving to another town in another state, Jane hadn't exactly had a phenomenal few months.

"Jane, you can tell me or ask me anything. You know that," he told her, placing the last of the coffee cups away. She nodded and brought her pencil back to her pages. She suddenly looked smaller in the harsh diner light. She was wearing a sweatshirt she had stolen from him when she was five, and it still looked like it could swallow her whole. She looked ready to shrink into it, only herself and her book.

She finished writing her thoughts on the yellowing page—her father had only written a few things in this book, leaving plenty of space for all the notes Jane herself would write every time she reread it—and placed the book on the counter again, lightly this time. "Uh, did Sandra, Mom, ever, like, try to get help or go to rehab?" Her question came out sounded jumbled as she murmured. Jess's insides twisted when he finally comprehended what she said.

His thoughts turned to a previous conversation with Rory that week. He wanted to lie to the dejected teen in front of him because he knew without a doubt that his answer could never bring her any hope or reassurance. Jess's head was spinning with lies and truths and half-lies and half-truths. Nothing was what his daughter would want or need to hear. She wanted the truth, but Jess was reluctant. Thinking about the impassive yet slightly crestfallen expression that would most definitely cross Jane's face, only brought him more turmoil and sadness.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." Her monotonous tone, normally empty of emotion, unmasked her disappointment. Jess knew the whole tough attitude didn't work. He had used it many times before, so he could immediately see through Jane's façade. He trudged towards her; a rueful grimace on his lips.

"Where's this coming from?" Jess settled onto the stool beside his daughter. Jane shrugged and stared at her shoes. Jess brought his hand to her chin, lifting it to look at him, and searched her face. "Janie, come on. It's me. It's Dad. Come on, talk to me, Babe."

Jane met his eyes, and she was angry with herself for saying anything in the first place. She shouldn't have asked about her mother and her druggy ways. She should have kept her mouth shut just like all the previous times she'd read _The Bell Jar_. Even though Esther was mentally ill, seeing her try to get the help that was disgustingly grotesque at the time always made Jane wonder if her own mother had tried to get help. She hated herself for having these feelings of confusion. She hated her mother, she didn't want to know anything about her mother. So why did this question keep popping up?

"Dad, look, it's nothing. I shouldn't have said anything 'cause I mean… I don't want to know anything about Sandra, so it wasn't important. I shouldn't have asked." She was closing up again. They had made such progress in the past week. She was reversing it all. Jane's through clenched as she stared back into her father's eyes. They were warm, and tears burned in the corner of her own eye. Feeling the sting of impending tears and swollenness of a muted sob, Jane regretted thinking about her mother. She hated crying, detested it. It made her weak, and she had already cried once this month. She was strong; she always had been; she always would be. She refused to cry again, especially in front of her father.

"No, Jane, everything is important. Your mom was a horrible mother, but that doesn't mean you can't ask about her. You deserve the truth, and I'm sorry, Princess, for wanted to keep it from you because I thought it might save you some heartache. But, no, Sandra didn't go get help. She promised to, lots of times, but she never did. Your mom just wasn't ready to be a mom, and she probably never will be, and I'm sorry that I kept her around for that long.

"Jane, she was happy. At first. For a while she was really excited, and couldn't wait for us to be a family. But we were young, not as young as Aunt Lorelai, but not old enough to have totally figured ourselves out. When you were born, your mom had been a place holder because I had gotten my heartbroken for the millionth time by someone I loved— _love_ —dearly. But, when I held you for the first time, I loved you more than anyone I had ever known. You were my saving grace, Kid. I wanted you to be Sandra's too. I thought you would be what finally gave her a wake-up call and grow up, but nothing can do that. Don't take it personally 'cause she could be face down in a ditch and still wouldn't realize she had to grow up.

"Just 'member, Janie, that Sandra did love you. She was just unable to realize it or act on it all those years ago. Oh, and if you tell anyone how disgustingly mushy I just got there, you'll be grounded for the rest of your life." That last statement sounded more like her dad. He didn't get mushy often, but Jane liked it when he did. It was a side of him that only she saw, it was like her own secret that she and her dad shared.

"Thanks, Daddy." Jane kissed Jess's cheek. The writer stood and held his arms out for Jane to find solace. He pulled her in tightly, pouring every ounce of love he felt for this not-so-little girl into the embrace. His heart broke to know how much Sandra messed up his perfect daughter, but she was gone now. So, Jess held on tightly to his Janie Lu. His saving grace that came in the form of a perfectly tiny baby, and had now grown up to be this beautiful young woman before him.

"I love you, Janie Lu. More than anything," he mumbled into her hair as she relaxed in his arms. " _I love you_."

 **AN 2: Hey again, so what'd you think of Tristan being the lawyer? I got the idea from jordana60, so thank you again! And I know in a previous chapter I named Dean's youngest daughter Hilary, but I went back and changed it so Tristan's wife could have that name. Cause if you haven't noticed I like love One Tree Hill, and since Chad Michael Murphy is both Tristan and Lucas, I thought I'd make his wife and daughter like Peyton and Sawyer, but I couldn't totally break the fourth wall since Jane watches that show too! So I changed Peyton's name to Hilary like Hilary Burton who played her. Anyway, I hope you liked the adorableness of Jane and Jess at the end. And I know that Paris is a doctor, but I could also see her as a lawyer cause she's such a spitfire. Sorry for rambling, and I hope you enjoyed it and once again share your thoughts please! They inspire me!**


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: Wow, ok, I still suck! I have no excuse except for being busy and lazy and unwilling to write during school cause I don't want nobody looking me up. Well. Sorry guys! Here's a long long long chapter to make up for my inability to be a good person. This is like seven pages, so yay! I sat and just wrote nonstop since like 3, so sorry about the mistakes if there are any. Just wanted to get this to you guys ASAP! Well, enjoy and please review! I badly want to know what you think of this, and this chapter is like specific? Is it good? Please please tell me cause I don't believe myself. Anyway, happy week, happy reading, and happy reviewing!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

The night before, Jane had gone to bed at a reasonable hour which was odd because normally she wasn't a reasonable teenager. She preferred staying up and watching TV or reading until eleven. But, she had told her father that she was tired and had a headache before falling asleep quickly in the bedroom across from Jess's. He heard her snores while the light was still on, and he placed a kiss on his forehead before turning it off.

Then, she slept through her alarm. Jane never slept through her alarm. She had never been a good sleeper, so she would wake up early to get a head start on her day. Lately, she had been using that time to help out at the diner, but occasionally, she would spend the time doing homework or watching the resolution to a cliffhanger episode on the show she was currently watching. However, when Jess heard her alarm persist and not get slammed onto the floor, he knew something was wrong.

Jess stumbled over to Jane's room, still half-asleep himself, and slammed his fist onto the clock. Jane didn't stir. Her face was pressed into her pillow like when she was a little kid. She had the blankets wrapped around her as tightly as possible, and her body shook with cold. Jess placed his hand on Jane's back, cringing at how warm she felt through the sheets. He moved closer, moving his hand to her exposed cheek. Her face was flushed and burning up. So, Jess turned back to the alarm clock to ensure that it wouldn't go off again and headed downstairs.

Luke was already clambering around as the first customers trickled in. The proprietor looked at his nephew, who was rubbing sleep from his eyes, and handed a stack of pancakes to Kirk and Kirk, Jr. "Coffee?" asked Luke, wondering why Jess was up this early. Jess nodded and sat at the counter.

"Jane's sick," he said, chugging down the coffee. "And, I've got that meeting with the lawyers and Truncheon guys, and a call with Tristan later, and a meeting with Dean to discuss my financial situation."

"When'd she get sick?" Luke asked worriedly.

"I don't know. She went to bed early last night, and this morning she slept through her alarm and was burning up. Suffice to say she's not going to school today. And I don't want to leave her alone. I know that she's sixteen and can take care of herself, but you remember that one time when she was eleven…" Jess shuddered recalling the day Sandra had tried to call CPS on him for leaving Jane home sick for a few hours while he had business to attend to.

"I could go check on her every now and then if you want."

"No, no. I'll just cancel my meetings or something. It's not a big deal." He waved his hand and took another swig.

"Jess, this is a big deal," Luke countered.

"What's a big deal?" Rory came up behind the men, holding a brought-from-home coffee cup that was bigger than the already rather large ones Luke supplied.

"Jane's sick, and I got a bunch of meetings to go to, but I don't want to leave her home alone," Jess explained.

"Jess, she's sixteen. You were out doing God knows what at that age, and you want to watch after your kid when she's sick and unable to go anywhere? What, you afraid she'll pull a Ferris Bueller?" Rory joked. The look Jess and Luke exchanged made her think that Jane totally would pull a Ferris Bueller.

"Look," Jess placed his hands on the counter. "I just don't like Jane being home alone when she's sick. I'm just gonna cancel my meetings and spend the day with her." His coffee cup had been discarded but Rory eyed the drink realizing Luke still hadn't filled her up. Rory pushed her own cup her stepfather's way and plopped down beside her old flame.

"Ok, I get it. I take off work when Lizzy or Lukas is sick too, but, Jess, it sounds like these meetings are really important. Jane's gonna be fine." Her tone was soft and understanding, but it didn't do anything to change his mind.

"No, it's different. I'm not…" he faltered, he hated talking about himself and the way he felt; even when it came to his daughter. "Jane doesn't get sick often, but when she does, I'm always there. I don't… I don't like seeing her sick cause I just, God, I get scared, alright? It's scary that if I'm not there while she's sick, something could happen to her, and it'd be all my fault."

Rory nodded beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder in comfort. "Jess, she's sixteen. At this point, I think she can call someone if it gets bad."

"You don't get it, Rory," he spoke agitatedly because she didn't know the real reason he was scared when Jane was sick. "I left Jane home one time, and Sandra was in the middle of a drug deal in the living room when Jane woke up. If I leave her alone again, CPS or something is gonna pop out of those bushes and take her. Cause Sandra called them another time when Jane was sick, and I had to go to work. She was too stoned to realize that she was her parent, and that she would be the reason Jane got taken away not me, but I just don't want to leave her alone."

"Why'd you let Sandra stick around?" Rory's voice was quiet and concerned.

Jess flicked an invisible object and sighed, "Because Jane wanted her around, at least when she was little. It was a mess from the start, but I let her stay, and she kept getting worse. Every time I kicked her out, she came back again asking for help to get sober. She usually fell off the wagon after about a month. Or she'd leave for a couple years to come back and show me these NA badges saying she was clean when really she'd stolen them off the homeless guy down the street. Jane said that she needed us that we could get her back on track, but that was before Jane lost her faith in humanity."

"Jess," she sounded garbled as she bit back a few tears. He finally looked at her, and she let a few slip from the pain in his eyes. She wanted to sob for the anguish she saw. His hand came to her cheek to wipe away the tears that he had inadvertently caused, and she noticed it was shaking. She clutched his hand, not once moving her gaze. He breathed in deeply, and it was becoming obvious how restless he had become in the last few seconds. Rory flung her arms around Jess's neck and held on as tightly as possible.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. Rory pushed back, uncertainty written on her face.

"Why are you so sorry all the time? This isn't your fault!"

"I keep making you cry," his volume weakened with each syllable.

"Stop saying that." She slapped his bicep. "I want to help. I want to get to know Jane because she reminds me of somebody I used to know."

"She's a lot happier than I ever was. She even optimistic… occasionally, on a Friday." Jess finally smiled, and Rory thought the sun had brightened. "I'm still gonna stay home with her, though. Talking it out doesn't mean I'm gonna change the way I take care of my daughter."

The newspaper editor dropped her head into her hands. "No, you're going to work. You're going to save your company. And you'll do it because, because I'll be staying with Jane."

Jess's eyes widened, and he shook his head rapidly. "No, Rory, no. I can't ask you to do that."

"You didn't ask. I offered. Besides, you need to go into work, and I want to know Jane better. It's a win win." Jess was prepared to turn her down, and he opened and closed his mouth unable to think of what to say. "Jess, you've done so much for me. Please, it's the least I can do. And if it'll help, tomorrow I'll let you watch my kids while I go to work."

He smirked, " _Let_ me? More like trying to kill me."

"Oh, I wouldn't kill you. Think of how dull my life would be without you," she quoted him word for word from what he said twenty-one years ago. "I still think it's ridiculous you want someone to babysit your teenage daughter, but you were always a weird one."

"Says the woman who devil egged my car," he retorted.

"That was never proven, I have an alibi."

"Your mom doesn't count," Luke finally rejoined the conversation and refilled Rory's coffee. "And didn't you do it cause you were jealous that someone was attached a certain blonde by the lips." The proprietor's eyes flicked between Jess and the window like Shane was there. Even though Rory knew the blonde of their past wasn't there, she still tried to sneakily check behind her shoulder.

"Oh yeah," Jess laughed. "I heard what's'her name left town cause she was shunned or something."

"No, _Shane_ dropped out before you did cause she kept getting weird looks when she got pregnant." The two men looked at her quizzically. "Lane told me. Heh, Jess, does Jane have an older sibling she doesn't know about?"

"Not funny."

"Don't worry, we're Facebook friends and she married her baby daddy who happened to be a college guy. Although, I don't know, in the pictures he always seems to look like you." Her joking was not taken well, and Jess glowered at her.

"Totally not watching your demon spawn now." He stood up from the stool and started towards the stairs. Rory was quick to chase after him and fought every urge to jump on his back, but didn't since Miss Patty and Babette had already seen their little opening up fest. It was odd how easily they bounced back from the emotional stuff to bantering with each other. That was always how they'd been.

The writer continued walking up the steps to his apartment where his daughter resided, and Rory was unsure if she should follow or not. Although her mother was willing to barge in on anything, Rory wanted to know whether she was overstepping her bounds. Maybe she had when she kept pestering Jess about his parenting ways and making fun of his worries. She kept going and felt herself run into his back when he stopped and she hadn't notice. He smirked at her, and she stuck out her tongue.

Inside the apartment, Jane was now sitting up in bed, looking rather pale. Her brown eyes flicked from her phone to the newcomers, and she slunk further into her covers. Jess shuffled over to her, sat on the side of the bed, and held his hand against her forehead. Jane shook her head, annoyed or cold from the touch. "How ya feeling, Janie?" Jess's tone was soft, so soft Rory barely caught what he said.

"Not good," Jane whined, bringing her phone back to her eye level. Jess nodded.

"M'kay. I have to go to work, but Rory offered to stay with you until I get back," he was incredibly kind, and his voice hadn't changed tones or volume levels since entering the apartment. Jane nodded as she stifled a yawn. "I'm sorry, Princess. That I couldn't be here while you're sick."

"S'okay, Daddy. I don't need a babysitter," she whispered. Rory pretended she didn't care that Jane was coming up with an excuse for her because while she thought Jess's way of thinking was crazy, she was looking forward to getting to know Jane without her running off or doing something.

"I know, Babe. I just like to know you're taken care of." He kissed her forehead, taking a peak at her phone. "What're you reading?"

"Communist Manifesto, it's a part of the curriculum now. Taylor's idea," she giggled towards the end, and Jess looked happier than Rory had ever seen him. He was a different man when he was with his daughter, even if she was sick.

Jane fell onto her pillows and exhaled. Jess leaned forward and scooped her into his arms. She relaxed slightly but still cringed from the pain running through her body. They pulled apart, and Jane pressed a kiss to her father's cheek. "Do you need anything before I go?" he asked her.

"Can you tell Uncle Luke I want some pancakes and bacon?"

"Course, Janie. Ok, I'm gonna go now." As he stood he lingered by the bed, giving Jane another once over. She turned on her side, sighing loudly, and he finally stepped back. "Love you." He finally turned from the room, and nodded at Rory when he saw her. She followed him out into the hallway.

"Jess," she whispered after him, unsure of how much her voice would carry. "You're a really good with her, and I wish Logan had been half the father you are. Thanks, for letting me spend time with her. She seems like a great kid."

He nodded (he really had to stop doing that), "She is." Then he moved towards the stairs, catching her gaze. Her cheeks burned from the lingering pain in his eyes that had turned to fire. A fire that was so intense it was now bubbling in her stomach as she repressed a giddy smile. She had never had to place her hand on her stomach to calm her nerves with Logan. There was something about the way Jess made her revert to her teenage ways. She bit back a laugh, trying to stop thinking about his eyes, his hair, his crooked smile, his way with Jane.

"Ugh," Rory groaned. "This isn't happening." But still her mother's words rang in her ears, clear as the day she said them. _Maybe, Honey, you are falling for Jess_. It wasn't true. She was going through a messy divorce. She had kids; he had a kid. It wasn't a good time, but then again, when had they ever had good timing? _Never_ , she bitterly thought. Because although she adored her children, sometimes she wondered what it could have been like if she had cheated on Logan in Philadelphia. Could they be together now? Would she have had Lizzy earlier, and she wouldn't have been Lizzy. Too many thoughts went through her mind right now. All the 'what ifs?' that she secretly, deep down didn't want to be 'what ifs?'

Rory leaned against the door jamb, trying to get her heart rate back down. Her breathing was ragged without having a reason to be, and her stomach twisted with guilt. She shouldn't be thinking that. She was happy with her children, and she knew that Jess was happy with his daughter. If she had stayed with him that night, they wouldn't have the happiness despite the sadness they had faced. But she still wondered. Because the way he had looked at her, the way he was with his daughter created a feeling in her stomach that she couldn't describe.

She slowly crept into the living room/kitchen that was basically the entire apartment. "Jane?" she called softly. The teenager had gone to the couch while Rory was in the hallway, and her face was scrunched in pain, but the remote (which was probably causing her the pain from its lack of heat and weight) was still firmly grasped in her hand. Rory tentatively walked towards the girl, acting like she was some sort of wild animal that could be spooked at any given moment.

Jane grunted, and Rory had to stop herself from thinking of Jess. She took that as an "OK" to sit beside her, and Rory wanted to hug this girl she barely knew like she did Lizzy when she was sick. Jane smirked goofily at the TV before pressing play, and Rory wondered what in the world was going through the girl's mind. Then Rory caught a glimpse of the show, and her hand flew to her mouth to stop her from shouting in surprise.

Jane nodded, cracking up at Rory's reaction. "That's, that's…" No intelligible sentence escaped Rory's lips as she watched the TV. "That's… not your dad," she finally sputtered. Jane curled up more around her pillow, but still smiled at the woman. "Oh, my gosh, I remember when this came out. Well, you probably do too cause it came out seven years ago, but I never watched it. For obvious reasons. Well, that and my husband didn't like the resemblance this guy has to your dad. They met one time, like forever ago. Yeah, they didn't like each other. Your dad called him 'the blond dick at Yale.' It was right after he'd written his first book. I was so proud of him." Jane let her ramble on, listening intently although looking rather bored. When Rory noticed how Jane was looking at her, she stopped talking and closed up. "Sorry."

"No, keep talking! Were you and my dad close?" Jane was now curious, and Rory was unsure of how to offhandedly mention that she had dated this girl's dad.

"Uh, yeah, I guess you could say that. I mean, we dated my senior year right after Dean broke up with me," she breathed as she remembered the twenty-four-hour dance marathon. Jane was now alert. She had the slightest inkling that these two had a history, but she didn't know how extreme the history had been. "I remember when he first came to Stars Hollow. He hated it! The night we met, he stole my book, stole my mom's beer, and tried to get me to sneak out. He used to pull all these kinds of pranks to get Taylor's and Dean's goats. I never admitted it, especially to Dean, but I thought they were hilarious."

Jane giggled thinking of her father and Dean not getting along (now it made sense why they had been apprehensive about their daughters' friendship), and she could imagine Taylor's face at the pranks he pulled. Taylor got beat red when her dad so much as whistled. "What happened between you guys? If you were close why'd you never keep in touch?"

Rory's face fell. She didn't want to ruin Jane's image of her father. She knew that Jess had changed from his teenage years, and Jane obviously knew it too, but Rory almost couldn't bring herself to speak of it. But she wanted to get to know Jane, and if that meant spilling her guts about the girl's father then so be it.

"Oh gosh," Rory's hand flew to her forehead. "There was a fight at a party this kid, Kyle, was hosting, and it was about me." She softly chuckled. "Jess wasn't very vocal when we were younger, and he was angry that he wasn't graduating and Luke was gonna kick him out—"

"Wait, Luke kicked my dad out?" Jane was concerned, and a little bit of her respect for her great-uncle disappeared.

"No, well yes, but no, Jane, it's not what you think it was. Your dad was a troubled kid, but he had—has—a heart of gold. School wasn't his thing, but he is incredibly smart as I assume you are. He and Luke made a deal when he moved back here that he would graduate. That was partially why he went back to New York because he was failing his classes and got us into a car crash, but that's a whole 'nother can of worms. And Jess promised Luke he would graduate, but he didn't because he was working at Walmart. Now, your dad was smarter than anyone at that school, but he had just missed too much. It was Luke's way of showing him tough love, and your dad was bitter about it for a while, but he knows now that Luke did it for his benefit."

"So what happened with the fight?"

"Oh, right. Um, we had been upstairs, and your dad was moody. I went back downstairs, a little upset, and Dean freaked out and punched your dad square in the jaw. It literally wrecked Kyle's house. And that didn't help much with Luke or Jess's growing anger about the whole not graduating thing. So, your dad left. I saw him on the bus, he said he'd call me, which he technically did, and that was the end of that." Rory placed her hands in between her legs, and rocked back and forth slowly.

"But you said you saw my dad when he wrote his book. That was like a year before I was born." Jane was no longer paying attention to the emotional TV show, but pestering Rory for information on her father. Luke and Lorelai only spoke highly of their nephew, and anyone else in town only spoke negatively, save Patty and Babette.

"Well, that following winter your grandma Liz came to town during the Firelight Festival, and she told your dad where Luke hid his car. So he came back into town, this was the beginning of their reconciliation, and he got his car. But the car was so old, and Gypsy took her sweet time repairing it… That was the night he told me he loved me…" Jane gaped at the woman before her. Her father didn't tell women he loved them. He didn't tell her mother he loved her, and he didn't tell his minimal serious girlfriends he loved them. He had told Jane that she was the only girl in his life that he could actually love, but it looked like there was another.

"The icing on the cake was when your grandma Liz got married. Your dad _did not_ want to walk her down the aisle, but he did it for Luke. It was the end of my freshman year at Yale, and after the wedding, your dad came to my dorm. He asked me to run away with him," she breathed in deeply, tears stinging as she remembered that night. "Gosh, it was like a bajillion years ago. But he showed up at my door saying he was ready, that I could count on him, that he _knew_ we were meant to be together. But I was scared, I had just finished my freshman year that morning, and I wasn't ready. Maybe he was, maybe he wasn't. It really killed me to say no, but I did. Sometimes, I wonder what it would have been like if I said yes…"

"Still not at the whole book thing!" Jane's impatience was rising. She was enjoying this, knowing her father was in fact able to love another human being who wasn't a family member. She had never been told all of this, and the fact that this woman barely knew her, yet was telling her all about her father at her age and after.

"Right, right. I didn't see him until the year I dropped out of school. My mom and I were not on speaking terms, and one night, there's Jess standing in my driveway. I was living with the grandparents, and he showed up in the middle of the night. I had just taken my drunk of his rocker future husband back to his parent's place, and there's your dad. He was just so… Jess. That's the only way to describe him. And he had written a book. I knew he was smart, I had always known it. And, I was just so so proud of him. He invited me for dinner the next day, but Logan—that's my husband's name—came home early and was jealous with a capital "J." He didn't like your dad from the get-go. Logan made a couple comments, and your dad handled it so well. I followed him out of the bar, and he called me out on my shit. Everything from not talking to my mom, to dating Logan, to living with my grandparents, to dropping out of Yale… I swear I can still hear his voice as he said it to me… then he left."

"That's it? You had a fight outside a bar, and you don't talk to my dad for, what? Eighteen years?"

"Well, there's more. I went to his open house at Truncheon. And we kissed. I told him it was all taken care of, knowing full well he meant Logan, but I let him kiss me anyway. And I hurt him so much. He told me he didn't deserve it. We had always had bad timing… it is what it is, me, him…" the girls on the couch didn't realize how long they had talked about Jess and Rory's past until the episode of _This Is Us_ had ended.

"Ok, so if you and Dad haven't talked in literally seventeen years, then how come you guys are all chummy now?" Jane didn't miss anything. Most certainly when it came to her father's total change in personality.

"Your dad's just helping me get through my divorce. That's why Tristan was here. He's gonna be my lawyer."

"Oh, sorry." Jane began closing up again, unsure of what to say. She checked her phone and said, "Gosh, Uncle Luke's taking a long time with those pancakes…" Before lapping into awkward silence.

"I'm sorry if that was weird. I mean he's your dad, of course it was weird hearing all of that. I'm sorry." Rory felt stupid, sitting and watching this show with her ex-boyfriend's daughter after telling said daughter all the crap they had put each other through.

"No, I liked it. Explains a lot actually. He doesn't talk about the past, and my aunt and uncle only talk good about him, so I liked your perspective." Now, Jane was slightly smiling at Rory, the smallest bit of the awkwardness gone.

Then they struck up another conversation about Jess's pranks, and Jane laughed so hard she forgot about her fever or her pancakes. She was enjoying her time with Rory. Secretly wondering when her dad would get the courage to ask this woman out. Because to her, Rory was wrong about timing. Those two were just now getting to the perfect time.

Before Jane could continue to think about her father and Rory, her pancakes arrived. The conversation stopped there, but Rory was already a thousand times better than Jane's own mother. That was all she looked for in a woman for her father. Rory was perfect.


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: Hey, y'all! So, I'm finally back but not for long! Ah, I'm so so sorry! I just had AP exams at school, and now it's getting close to finals, and then I'm going to France. Like in a total immersion program, so no English, and sadly that means no updates! I just had to make sure I got this chapter out before I go, and I know I go in June, but I'm obviously not that great at updating, so this is either the last or one of the last posts before I go to France. I've also been on a Little House on the Prairie high, like me and my sister are reliving our childhood, so that's also taking up a lot of time…. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter, and if you did please review, and if you didn't, please review. I love to hear from you all, the good, the bad, and the ugly! Ha... Well, yeah I hope you like this! Happy Wednesday!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

Jess had expected for Jane to either be sleeping or reading when he got home, giving him ample time to get his bearings straight before facing the very true reality that Truncheon would most likely be bankrupt by the end of this year. He had just finished a horrible call with Matt and Chris seconds before thrusting the door open to his apartment. Instead of the quiet he longed for, Jess heard pitiful sobs, and his instincts immediately kicked in. On the couch sat Rory and Jane, an empty tub of ice cream crumpled between them, the impromptu tenth season of _Little House on the Prairie_ open on the coffee table.

He sighed as his blood pressure lowered because his daughter was fine. She may have been sobbing on the couch, but in every other sense of the word, Jane was fine. Jess crouched in front of his shaking daughter, a soft smile forming as he looked up at her. Jane threw her arms around her father's neck, and he patted her back while smiling at Rory, who wasn't doing too good at keeping it together either. The two had obviously had a somewhat good, if not emotional, day from the looks of it. Jess stood to leave, but was stopped by Jane pulling on his arm.

He settled down into the uncomfortably small space between Jane and the arm of the couch, and the still slightly feverish teenager laid her head against her father's chest. She sniffled often, and Jess wasn't sure if it was from the show or from her cold, but it didn't matter if this was how she was welcoming him home.

While the relationship between father and daughter had improved, Jane was still the slightest bit distant from Jess. At first, he didn't realize it; but as time wore on, Jane was either slowly reverting back to her ways, or she hadn't given them up completely yet. She had returned to asking her father how his day was and in turn would respond to his questions on hers, but Jess had noticed that he was the one instigating any affection. While Jane did kiss his cheek from time to time, it wasn't the same as the days when she bounded towards him with arms open wide, the toothiest grin lighting up her entire face. Jess was the one who pulled her towards him, and Jane would either accept it or stand stiffly.

And all though this moment was amazing, there was too much crying in the apartment, and Jess needed a smoke. He had tried to quit when Jane was born, but there were times when he couldn't help himself. This being one of those times.

Even though it was over the most ridiculous of things, in this case Albert's final episode on _Little House_ , Jess hated seeing his daughter cry. What parent did? But when Jane cried, he felt so powerless, and he _hated_ it. The worse time, and the "last time," she cried had been eight years prior. She was only eight, and the fact that she had vowed to stop crying, at the age where every kid cries over the most random problem, filled Jess with dread. He had grown up squashing his feelings; he knew it wasn't good to keep them inside, but Jane didn't listen to his advice at eight years old. She had been hurt too many times, and that had been the final straw.

That summer, Sandra had run away yet again. She left a note saying she met someone who would make her happy the way Jess couldn't, and he had the money to buy all the drugs and booze she wanted. The kicker about this "stellar" guy had been no kids. This guy didn't get "bogged down" or "care too much" like Jess did. Sue him for wanting to take care of his daughter. However, Jane had found the note before her father. Since the father-daughter duo was in Stars Hollow, they hadn't known until a week after their return. After all, it wasn't uncommon for Sandra to be gone for long durations of time.

But one day, Jane's school had let out early when a pipe burst, and Jess hadn't been there to intercept the bus. So, the eight-year-old had let herself in and began her homework. If only she hadn't started her homework, if only her pencil hadn't snapped, if only she hadn't gone to her father's unused office, the child could have been saved a lot of heartache. She found the note stuffed between the pencil sharpener and the keyboard. Her brown eyes flitted across the page as her eyelids grew heavy, welling with fat, hot, burning tears. Jane had thrown down the pencil she no longer needed and skittered into the kitchen where she unhinged a drawer in search of a bus pass her father kept underneath a pile of junk. Her vision was so blurred by the tears that she wouldn't have been able to find it if her fingers hadn't been placed in the perfect position.

Jane was quite a sight on the bus. An eight-year-old girl holding a crumpled piece of paper to her chest while her body wracked with sobs. The bus stopped a few blocks away from Truncheon, and Jane looked like a drunkard the way she swayed and stumbled with each shaky cry. Standing outside Truncheon gained her stranger looks, and she thrust the door open, failing to realize her father and uncles had been in a rather important meeting.

"Jane!" Jess yelped as Jane fell to the floor with another sob. The man in the suit almost glared at the child, but his demeanor softened when he watched the father—whom he was working a business agreement out with—lovingly take to his young daughter. Jane's skinny arms nearly choked Jess from how tightly she held onto him. "Janie, what's wrong, Baby? C'mon, Janie. It's Daddy, tell me what's wrong." Lord knows how many times Jess had ever said that to his daughter.

Jane pushed her body away from Jess's, and she tossed the piece of paper she had found in his vacant office towards him. The meeting hadn't been adjourned, but Jess quickly read the contents of the note. He shot Matt and Chris glances full of loathing, and they worried that he would do something drastic.

Jess stood abruptly, causing Jane to tumble once again. She let out a screech of surprise and fear. Matt quietly explained what little he knew of the situation to the business man before them. The man nodded, but didn't storm out like the publishers expected. Meanwhile, Chris grabbed at Jess.

"No, Chris!" Jess yelled, throwing his friend off. "Sandra's gone too far. She jabbed at _my_ daughter personally. She's not getting away with what she said to _my_ daughter." His anger only grew with each word he spoke.

"What'd she say?" Matt tentatively asked.

"I'm a fuck-up," Jane's thick voice filled the room, leaving a deafening silence. Jess's stomach clenched, and his eyes scrunched up to push back the tears he was never going to shed, most definitely not in front of Jane. "I'm a fuck-up and the reason she drinks and does drugs. She never loved me because I'm the fuck-up who fucked up her life." Jess didn't know how many times Jane had read the note on the bus ride to Truncheon, but she had nearly recited the letter word for word.

"Jane Lucia, I never want to hear you say that again!" Jess bellowed, angrier with Sandra than Jane. The only way he could keep from crying himself was to yell.

"It's true, Dad! It's true!" Jane's scream was heartbreaking. Jess couldn't help it. He looked at Jane—his precious daughter, broken and scared and lonely and lost—and he too broke down. He wasn't doing it because of what Sandra said about him, that hadn't been bothering him for years, he was breaking down because Jane actually believed she was a fuck-up. He had worked tirelessly to ensure that she never knew the extent of Sandra's hatred for her, but he had failed. That grieved him the most.

"I'm sorry, Janie," Jess cried as he held Jane close. "I'm sorry. It's all my fault."

Jane wanted to respond, but she was in awe as her father broke down in front of her, Matt, Chris, a potential investor. He kissed her all over her head and face; he rubbed her shoulders and back; he rocked her back and forth. These were all things he had done plenty of times, but this was the first time her father, her "Daddy," her rock, her savior cried while showing the affection she had craved from her mother.

"I'm sorry, Janie. I'm so sorry," he repeated, over and over again. For what felt like hours, it was just the two of them. Everything else faded away as Jess held his baby girl. He didn't care anymore that he had broken the rule at the top of his list: don't cry in front of Jane—or at all. He brought her eight-year-old awkward fingers to his lips and kissed every-one. He allowed her to cry as loudly as she wanted into the crook of his neck. He held her until the throbbing pain in her heart calmed to a dullness that hurt less but would never go away.

Their cries softened to sniffles and the occasional blubbering (in Jane's case. Jess had only been caught crying this once; never in his life would he ever blubber). Jane's arms were still tightly grasping her father's neck, which was now sopping wet from her tears and nose running like a fountain. Jess sniffled a few more times for good measure, utterly embarrassed that he had finally lost it himself in front of their potential investor.

"I-I'm sorry, Mr. Gilmore," Jess croaked, running his arm in front of his own runny nose. "I obviously didn't mean… it's been a difficult few years."

"No, I respect you immensely, Jess," Richard said, throwing the younger man off. Jess couldn't believe the Richard Gilmore was granting him respect. "A single father running a publishing company, and still finding time to support your daughter. I could barely control Lorelai with a wife and a choosing of nannies."

"Then again, who can?" Jess joked, hoping with all the energy he had left that Richard would laugh. He thankfully did, and gave another kudos Luke's way.

"All the while writing books and going to school functions and raising an excellent young lady if what Lorelai tells me is anything to go off. Normally if I saw someone rush out of a meeting, it would most definitely put up a red flag. I have always been a business man first, but I believe in my years I've gone soft, and seeing the family man that you are, well, it all but seals the deal."

"Sir, you-you have no idea how much this means to me, to us," Jess rushed out, bumping Jane higher on his hip (the girl was incredibly small for eight years, and he would think he could hold her like this until the day she was married, which would be no sooner than thirty-five), and trying to shake Richard's hand.

"Well, it's the only way I could ever think to repay you." The comment left the three men and Jane rather confused.

"I'm sorry, sir, but what do you mean?" Jess brushed his lips over Jane's furrowed brow when he sensed her uncertainty, or maybe it was just a nervous tick he did to ensure that something in his life was right.

"Well, you were the one who convinced Rory to return to Yale."

"Sir, that was eight, nine years ago. And I didn't do anything, I just told her the truth."

"Like Lorelai and Paris before you. Obviously, it was you who finally knocked some sense into my granddaughter. She may still need some sense knocked into. You've probably heard she married Logan Huntzberger, and Emily loves it, but I'm unsure myself. Great business men the Huntzbergers, but not very good family men, unlike yourself. Well, I'm getting off topic, shall we talk more about the investment?" That comment had been the first Jess had heard about Rory in years. Even Lorelai didn't talk about it, and Jess had even been so cruel as to not go to his uncle's wedding just to avoid her.

"Oh, uh, would you mind talking it through with Matthew and Chris?" Jess asked. Jane was falling asleep in his arms, and he wanted to get her home. "It's been an exciting day, and I think Jane would fare better at our apartment."

"Of course!" Richard's booming voice was bright. "Why, I would suggest the same idea if I were in your situation."

"Thank you, Sir. Really, it means so much."

"Yes, yes. We'll draw up the papers—won't we gentlemen?" Richard gestured towards Matt and Chris who stood as straight as rails and nodded. "And spend time with your daughter. Children grow up incredibly fast." Jess understood; he felt like Jane had been born the day before.

As Jess walked towards the door, Richard called after him once more, "Oh, and Jess? Make sure that your daughter knows she is not—that vile term. From what I've heard, she is going to do great things someday." The younger man did not miss the admiration in the business man's voice.

"Yes, Sir, she will." They left it at that. None of the men in the room knew that Jane had been drifting between the worlds of consciousness and dreams and had heard every word. It was from that day forward Jane had sworn she would never cry again. That promise had been broken early on when the following week she fell off her bike and had cut her leg up so much she needed stitches.

Other than that, Jane tried to keep it in. She had seen what it did to her father. What her pain caused him. What _she_ did (not that it was really her fault, but she still felt just as guilty). She had instead bottled up her emotions, changing sadness to anger, hardening with each blow her mother sent her. But somewhere in the recesses of her mind was a kernel of hope. The optimism she had gained from Stars Hollow. It only caused her more pain, leading to her needing to break her promise. But no longer did Jane cry—about her mother or their life—in front of her father. _Little House_ was a completely different, tear-jerking story.

But with every time Jane did cry in front of him, most often from books and TV shows, Jess felt the impulse to smoke. Maybe it was because when Jane was a baby and finally stopped her squalling, Jess stepped outside with the baby monitor on his belt buckle for a smoke. Either way, he had never actually kicked the habit, and he knew how much it annoyed his daughter. He placed another light kiss on her hairline before walking to the cupboard that he hid his dwindling packet of cigarettes in.

Jess could feel Jane's glare on his back, but he didn't look acknowledge her. He needed to destress, and this was the best way to accomplish that. He kept telling himself that the entire way downstairs and out the door, but he still felt guilty for disappointing Jane. For giving in to his vice, and for allowing Truncheon to fall as far as it has. With each puff, he felt like he could see clearer. After all, it was always smoking at the bridge when he worked out his hardest problems.

"Hey, Jess," Rachel Forester smiled at her best friend's dad. Jess smiled, quickly putting out his cigarette. "Is Janie inside? Mom wanted me to bring her over some soup, and Haley had some coloring books she might like." How the Foresters became so nice, Jess would never know, but he was thankful for Rachel being his daughter's best friend.

"Uh, yeah, she's upstairs watching _Little House on the Prairie_. Pretty sure it's the one where Albert dies, so don't get roped in." Rachel nodded, and Jess pulled out another cigarette.

"Damn _Little House on the Prairie_ ," he muttered as nicotine filled his lungs. "Fuck, I need another pack."


	9. Chapter 9

**AN: Ok, so… long time no see? Is that what you say when it's been months since the last time you posted? How much of an excuse is going to France and your computer breaking and then being in the middle of college applications and working? Does that count? Probably not. So, I realized that I had already pre-written this chapter, and finally got it into my computer! Gosh that took me too long… Well, I apologize, and I wrote six pages of this… so I hope the length makes up for my absence? Anyway, please review if you liked it, and I hope you did! I hope I'll be writing a lot more now that I'm out of the woods of college apps… Oh, and I wrote a Stranger Things fic if y'all wanna check it out… Ok, I gotta go… Enjoy and have a happy Monday!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

Jane's smile fell considerably the moment she stepped into the diner. She saw her uncles Matt and Chris and her father huddled at a corner table—her aunt had coined it "the mafia table" before going on a rant about canolis and asking Jane if her grandmother had ever made them for her, she hadn't—and adjacent to her father's huddle that could mean no good, was a boy from her school sitting rather close to a girl Jane had never seen before. Rachel came up beside her best friend and chomped on the leftover apple from her lunch.

"She goes to Woodbridge," Rachel said between mouthfuls of apple. Jane snapped her attention to the taller girl, staring at her confusedly. "That girl," Rachel pointed to the girl whose brown hair obviously came from a bottle, "she goes to Woodbridge."

"Why does that matter?" Jane shifted her bag higher on her shoulder as she pushed her way to the curtain, never once gaining attention from her father or the mooning couple.

Rachel tried to keep her eye on the table as long as possible while she followed Jane to the apartment. "Well, you've had a thing for Ian since your first summer." The sandy-haired girl chased the black-haired girl farther into the hallway to the apartment.

"Rach, honey, I was three that first summer," Jane scoffed, all but throwing her bag onto the ground.

Rachel rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean. And I wouldn't be surprised if you met him then. Didn't Lane say she sent you and the twins to Kirk's daycare for a day or two with Davey and Martha? Cause every single kid in this town went through that scarring experience at least once, or in my case, ten times." She shuddered, remembering too many run-ins with Kirk, Jr.

"Ok, so I met him when I was little, so what? What does that have to do with that girl being from Woodbridge?" Jane tried to play it cool, but she was too much like her dad, ending up looking like a love-sick dork. "I don't know if you've noticed, but he's made it pretty obvious we're just friends, and barely that. I haven't talked to him in a year."

"Well, maybe we should fix that." Rachel dragged Jane away from her kitchen table. Jane tugged, but she wasn't as tall or as strong as Rachel, who ran trach and played softball, and the bigger girl got Jane out the door and tumbling down the steps. She lost her balance and flew forward down the rickety staircase her uncle needed to fix. She fell through the curtain and took down the poor passerby who was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"What the hell?" Strong arms pulled Jane into an upright position. She didn't realize she was currently sitting on someone's lap until the person spoke again. "Jane?" Ian Masterson currently held tight to the 16-year-old.

"Oh my gosh! Are you ok?" the girl who had been waiting for Ian to return came into Jane's view. Jane nodded her head and glared intensely at Rachel who had slowly and easily taken her time down the stairs. She grinned mischievously as Jane lay on the diner floor.

"Jane, I haven't seen you in forever! It's good to have you back!" Ian exclaimed, helping the embarrassed girl to her feet.

"You said 'hi' to me in the hallway last week," Jane told him sourly. Ian burned bright red and quickly moved to the girl he was with's side.

"Right, ok. Um, Jane, this is Genie, my girlfriend." Ian directed his eyes towards the leggy brunette beside him. Genie eagerly shook Jane's hand, a sincere smile enhancing her natural beauty.

"It's so good to meet you! Ian said he had a friend who had moved back to Stars Hollow!" She was nice too. Like genuinely nice. No wonder Ian liked her. Jane wanted to dislike her, but she was too kind.

"Nice to meet you, too. Ian, I didn't know you were dating anyone." Jane plastered on a semi-sincere smile.

"Oh, well, it's fairly new. We just had the 'what are we?' talk if you know what I mean." This boy's dorky charm was too tough to not smile at, and Jane finally gave in. "Hey, you've got to come over sometime. My parents and brothers would love to see you."

"I don't know. Last time I had dinner at your house you cried cause I beat you in Mario Kart." Jane smiled, for real this time, and she noticed that Genie laughed at her tale. Jane wanted to say that she couldn't, but the girl's laugh was infectious.

"That, that was a long time ago," Ian stuttered, rubbing the back of his neck while trying to save his pride.

"Yeah, last summer was _so_ long ago."

"Hey! I haven't cried about that since we were ten!" Ian was failing at pleading his case.

"Oh, my bad!" Jane placed her hand on her chest as she gave him a faux-ashamed glance. "Last summer you just pouted and refused to eat until you beat me. So, since you never did, I'm guessing you haven't eaten in a few months." Rachel snorted, and Genie laughed louder.

"Wait, I take that back. Not good to have you around again. I forgot how annoying you were, Baby." Ian's childhood nickname struck a chord that visibly shook Genie.

"The one time I come here for Halloween!" Jane threw her hands in the air. "I was seven!" Listening to Jane's loose explanation, Genie lost some of the tension in her shoulders, but Ian didn't notice.

"No, you were here again when we were nine! How could you forget that, Scully?" He mocked her affinity for things from her dad's day in age.

"Oh, of course, Mulder. And don't forget our amazing Monica Reyes." Jane pointed to Rachel, alluding to the year that the three of them, along with Steve and Kwan, had gone as _The X-Files crew_. "You can call me 'Scully,' Mulder, but I'm not your 'Baby.'"

"Is that because I saw you standing in the corner, Willie Oleson?" Jane's favorite thing about Ian was that he could keep up with her old TV and movie references. Rachel was grinning from ear to ear, but Genie got lost at the _Little House_ reference.

"You're to talk about trouble, Mr. Hunter. Saw Feeney call you down yesterday."

"Ok, nerds!" Rachel finally interrupted before another _Boy Meets World_ allusion could be made; plus, Genie began shooting her worried looks. "Lovebirds've gotta go, and me and Dorky the eighth dwarf have homework."

"Yeah, she's right." Ian noted the time on his phone. "About the time _and_ your height, Scully." He placed a large hand on Jane's head.

"I'm not short!" Except she was. At 16, Jane had barely passed 5'1," and Ian towered over her at 6'1"; a whole foot taller. Very similar to the real Mulder and Scully.

"Whatever, Shorty."

"Don't call me 'Shorty,' Bartholomew." Jane quoted Albert Ingalls, and Ian laughed.

"You wanna go, Ingalls?"

"Alright, we really should be going. It was nice meeting you, Jane. See ya, Rachel!" Genie called while dragging Ian back to his house. Jane sighed once they were gone and glared so strongly at Rachel she was surprised the taller girl was still alive.

"What?" Rachel asked, grabbing a somewhat stale donut from underneath the glass dome.

"Don't 'what?' me. I can _not_ believe you!" Jane exclaimed.

"Janie, he's our friend. Yours, mine, Steve, Kwan's. You were going to have to face him eventually." Rachel was now sitting, and Jane was at eye-level with her if not a smidgen taller. "Oh come on. You enjoyed it. You've missed Ian!" Rachel shouted as Jane shifted her gaze to the table her father was hunched over. She realized now that he had missed her entire fall and run in with Ian.

"His girlfriend was nice, and I hate that she's nice," Jane mumbled, still not looking at her best friend.

"Yeah, Genie's great, not gonna deny it. But she ain't no Janie Lu!" Normally, Jane would have giggled at Rachel's childishness, but she was now fixated on her father. She could run her mouth all she wanted, but no longer was she thinking of her crush and his girlfriend.

Across the room, Jess was creasing his brow, looking between different files and papers, and muttering with his co-partners. Jane wished she could hear what they were saying, know what was going on, but the diner was too loud, and she as out of range. Rachel continued to rant about the differences between Jane and Genie, but Jane wasn't listening. She couldn't hear from the blood pounding in her ears anyway. She pulled on her black locks, frowning when she realized her hair was still in the ponytail from this morning. She wrung her fingers, biting at the bottom of her lip when she saw her father do the same.

Jane started when she heard the bell above the door jingle, and she half-heartedly smiled to Dean as he hugged Rachel before going to the table Jess, Matt, and Chris occupied. There was no sign of relief on her father's features like she'd hoped, only more despair. Now would have been a good time to run into her father's arms like she did as a small child.

She saw Dean point their way, and Jane stifled her biggest gasp. Jess stared at her, only for a moment, with blank eyes. He immediately looked away when he realized they'd made eye contact. His entire visage was blanketed in fear and remorse, and Jane knew. Her biggest nightmare was becoming a reality, and her world was crumbling even more than it already had.

Truncheon was on its last two feet, ready to collapse at any second.

Jane flew from the diner, brushing away stray tears that shouldn't fall. She didn't listen as her father called out to her, or notice when she barreled down Ian and Genie walking along the sidewalk. She stopped in front of Lorelai and Luke's hose, ridding her cheeks of the bitter tears that had dared to form. She was now filled with loathing and despondency.

 _She_ had caused this. It was all _her_ fault.

She marched up the stairs to the porch and fell into a heap on the couch that lay in front of the living room window. She pulled a pillow to her chest, clawing at it, hitting it, screaming into it. Inside her, emotions warred with each other. She wanted to cry out in pain. She wanted to do everything in her power to completely destroy her mother like her mother had done her. She needed to cry, but remembered her promise of eight years, and how she had broken it and brought her father even more sadness. Jane finally succumbed, allowing the first (and most definitely the last) tears to dampen the cushion in her arms. She sunk her face into it and screamed.

She screamed so loud that she was unable to hear the footsteps rushing towards her. Jane was in shock when she didn't feel her father's strong, loving grip; but a gentler, more feminine one. Not opening her eyes, Jane clung to the woman, failing to realize it wasn't her Aunt Lorelai.

"Jane? What's wrong, honey?" Rory's soft voice broke through the sound of Jane's blood pumping in her ears. She didn't say anything, but tightened her grip on the woman who had dated her father years ago. Rory had moved on, gotten married, had children of her own; no relation to Jane except step-cousin. She still barely even knew Rory, having only spent one day watching TV with her. But, the woman brought peace, and she had a mother's warmth that Jane had been starved from growing up.

"It's, it's all my fault!" she gasped out, wiping at her eyes. Rory didn't know how to respond, so she ran her fingers through Jane's thick locks and pulled her closer for another hug.

"What's your fault, sweetie?"

"Tr-uncheon. It's, it's going under. And-and Daddy can't do anything to-to fix it… It's all my fault!" She threw the pillow away from the couch, thrusting the side of her fist into her thigh. Rory watched, wishing she was surprised, but the information given to her by Luke, her mother, Dean, and Jess himself had prepared her for this.

"Jane, this isn't your fault. You couldn't have had anything to do with it. The—"

"I was born! I wanted her around. I hoped we could all be a family. I was a part of Sandra's scheme! My entire existence is why Dad's going out of business!" Jane's words gave Rory pause. She blamed herself for circumstances completely out of her control. Rory understood; she had been in the same mindset since filing for the divorce papers.

Rory bit her lip, wondering what in the world Sandra could have said to Jane to make her believe those blatant lies. Jess would _never_ burden his daughter with thoughts of inadequacy. He would support and believe in her until kingdom come. _This_ was all Sandra's doing.

"It's getting cold… let's go inside." Rory helped the teenager to her feet, leading her into the kitchen. Jane was shaking from the cold, and she caused the chair to tremble as she sloppily fell into it. "Coffee?" Rory asked, holding up a mug.

"Hot chocolate," Jane replied, slumping a bit more into the chair. Rory nodded, her lips a straight line while she tried to think up words of encouragement for this hurting child. The woman's heart broke thinking about the pain that Jane had endured growing up with a careless mother and no strongly present female role-model during her teenage years. The girl was nearing seventeen in January, yet she had never had a mother to show her the ropes of womanhood.

Rory placed the hot chocolate in front of Jane, who only glanced at it. The impassiveness on the teen's face concerned the woman who had just last week spent the day laughing and crying with the normally charismatic girl.

"I'm fine," Jane's cutting tone penetrated the awkward silence.

"Is that what you call beating up my parents' patio furniture?" Rory's safest bet with Marianos was always sarcasm.

"I'm _fine_ ," she huffed again.

"You didn't sound fine a minute ago when you were telling me about how everything was your fault. Which is completely untrue."

"It _is_ my fault. And I'm fine with that."

" _No_ , you're _not_ ," Rory fought back. "Gosh, you're so much like your dad. You two are too stubborn for your own good, and you come this close to letting your guard down before clamming back up. You don't want to listen to the truth. The truth of the matter being: _it's not your fault_." Her words were laced with an underlying tone of annoyance, but the annoyance was drowned out by the sincerity. "I may not know you as well as I know your father, but you're _exactly_ like him. So by default, I know you too. And believe me. This could never be your fault."

Jane glowered at her mug. "But it is! If I'd never been born, Sandra wouldn't have drained Dad dry. He'd be fine and dandy sitting atop a pile of money."

"He'd rather have you and no money than millions without you," Rory told her lovingly. "People make mistakes, but you are not one of them. Neither are my children. I'm _happy_ my marriage is over. It wasn't a good one, but I would relive it _every day_ to just have my kids. And sometimes the things we do that are mistakes bring us our greatest treasures: our kids."

"I _am_ the mistake."

"Jane Mariano! If you're father hear you right now…"

"I was a blip. A little problem on Sandra's radar, and she didn't want me. I fucked up."

"You didn't 'fuck up.' You didn't choose your mom, and you didn't choose your dad. But your dad chose you."

"But my mom didn't want me…" Jane spoke so softly Rory strained to hear. It broke her heart. All Jane ever wanted in life was her mother's love and approval. Fathers couldn't fill a mother's place, not matter how hard they tried. Rory never realized how lucky she'd been with her mother until now. Hell, Lorelai got lucky with Emily compared to Jane and Sandra. Rory inhaled sharply when Jane's sweatshirt sleeve was pushed back by the side of the table to show her forearm and a thin white scar that ran along the length of her wrist to her elbow.

"Jane!" Rory exclaimed, grabbing the girl's arm. Jane recoiled then limply allowed Rory to tug on her sleeve. "Jane, this, this is no way to—"

"Sandra did it to me," Jane cut her off quickly. "The weekend I got my license. She got angry and cut me… spit in my face when I tried to explain… threatened Aunt Lorelai and Uncle Luke…"

Rory threw her arms around Jane's trembling frame, not caring how stiffly the girl in question responded. "Oh, Jane. I'm so sorry. I couldn't imagine…" The more Rory learned about Jess and Jane's struggle with Sandra, the more her heart ached. How could any parent treat their child that way? Even Liz hadn't resorted to cutting Jess.

"I'm used to it…" the sixteen-year-old's response physically hurt Rory.

"Did your dad know?" She couldn't believe that Jess let Sandra stay when she treated Jane, his precious daughter, that way.

Jane as wiping at a few tears that she hadn't realized spilled over. "Only some of it. I couldn't tell him everything 'cause then he'd kick her out. She would have been on the street getting worse. I thought if I pulled for her that maybe… maybe she'd… love me." She had never admitted that to anyone, not to Rachel, not to her father, not even to herself. Rory was crying, and Jane felt awkward, but she wanted to cry too. She wasn't going to anymore though. She was done crying over her mother.

"She told me she did, love me, this last time she'd came back. I actually thought she'd changed. It took her fifteen years to tell me she loved me, and it was all a sham. A ploy to get Dad's money!" Jane screamed into her mug, finally coming to terms with the event, allowing her tears to run down her cheeks and into the mug. "I wanted her to love me so much that I ruined my father's business. It's all my fault!"

Rory didn't know how to respond to that. She only wrapped Jane tighter and held her while she cried, giving her the one thing she sought for her entire life. A mother's love and comfort.


End file.
